B L U E P LAN E T was that the colonists should dig in, continue their efforts, and wait for the ships to arrive. Slowly, as the shock of their abandonment subsided, spirits began to rise once again and, for the most part, life in the colony returned to normal. However, as more years passed with no sign of the resupply effort, most became convinced that the colony was on its own. Most put their fear and anxieties behind them and faced thisrealization with renewed determination. The second generation colonists were also maturing at this time. These teenagers, the first true natives of Poseidon, had grown up immersed in the day-to-day struggles of the colonization effort. For them, the Athena Project was a central institution of almost mythic power and significance, one that vastly overshadowed the importance of Earth, a world they had never known. Poseidon was their home, and the lack of contact with Earth was almost irrelevant. Their goal, inherited from their parents and communities, was the continued survival and prosperity of the Athena Colony, and their isolation from Earth seemed just another challenge to face. This eventual acceptance of their isolation, however, did initiate broad changes in the colony's plans, priorities and efforts. The dominating importance of Haven and the other primary colonial settlements faded, as many groups volunteered to establish settlements in other regions of the planet. The colonists had experienced firsthand how destructive and hostile Poseidon could be, and spreading out would improve the colony's chances for long-term survival. Most importantly, though, the colonists began-to prepare for the inevitable deterioration of their technological resources. The technological infrastructure ofthe Athena Project had been formidable, and had allowed the colony to survive and prosper during the crucial early years. However, the mission plan was designed for a ten year colonization effort, and the colonists' equipment had been part of that design. As a result, while the colonists had fusion reactors, orb-itallanders, surface vehicles, computers, and so on, they did not have the manufacturing resources to build new equipment. There were ample stockpiles of spare parts, of course, and even machine tools for the fabrication of sim~lmechanical components. But the advanced infrastructure a technology needed to manufacture complex component , from reactor coils and industrial lasers, to optical circuits and fuel cells, simply did not exist. The colonists realized their supply of spare parts would eventually be exhausted, and that all their equipment would finally wear out or be lost to accidents. Of course, this crisis was further compounded by the colonists' limited population. Their existing technology was such that they may well have been able to establish and sustain a late 19th Century technological and industrial base: printing presses, steam-powered and internal combustion engines, limited manufacturing, electrical power, primitive telecommunications, and so forth. However, while their existing technology might have been sufficient for such an endeavor, their numbers clearly were not. Most critically, the exploitation of the natural resources necessary to fuel and sustain this industrialization would have been extremely labor-intensive, and labor 002~46 was a resource in very short supply. After much deliberation, the colonists accepted that they would be forced to survive at a technological level not seeQ on Earth for centuries. It was decided that, as a whole, they should opt for a level of technology that would be sustainable by small communities over an indefinite period of time. Fortunately, the colonists had ample time to prepare, and their technology could actually help them learn to do without. Ultimately, they simply had to re-train themselves. They had been trained to exploit their technology as effectively as possible, and now they simply had to learn to develop and use new, simpler resources. Their knowledge and abilities had served them well throughout the colonization effort, and it would continue to serve them for the indefinite future. They had extensive computer databases that could show them how to farm without robotic harvesters, how to build dwellings and boats without construction machinery or assembly lines, and how to treat the sick and injured without diagnostic computers or laser scalpels. "hese years marked the beginning of what some newcomers have called the natives' "slide into primitivism." The reality, of course, was far more complex and was a continuing process as the years passed. In the early years, this technological transformation ofthe colony was approached in much the same way as previous efforts. The leadership at the Colonial HQ in Haven organized re-education and vocational training programs, planned and coordinated new settlement efforts throughout the planet, and allocated existing technological resources, both to individual colonization groups and communities, and to centralized facilities in Haven and other major settlements. In this respect, the Athena Project survived the Abandonment, as the natives came to call their isolation from Earth. Its objective, however, was transformed from a shortterm effort to prepare the way for a permanent human colony, to the long-term survival and prosperity of its people. As the years passed, however, the Athena Project's greatest accomplishment was the facilitation of its own obsolescence. As the human population of Poseidon continued to climb, as new communities were established in remote regions, and as the colonists adapted to a new way of life, the efficiency of and necessity for centralized planning and coordination steadily declined. As more communities became self-sufficient, contact with other settlements became a choice, rather than an imperative. Many communities maintained strong relations with each other, based on geographical, historical, economic, and personal ties. A few withdrew into relative isolation. As each new generation came into its maturity, the Athena Project lost more of its significance. The new lives they had build for themselves, rather than a struggle to colonize Poseidon in the name of a distant world called Earth, became the anchor of the colonists' worldview and identity. It was also during these years that the cetacean colonists truly came into their own. In the early years of the colony, humans had been the undisputed masters of the little island of sophisticated technology in Poseidon's wilderness sea. After the Abandonment, the human colonists found themselves facing a new
o NTH E FRO N TIE R world that seemed primitive, alien, and frightening. In this world, the cetaceans were the new masters. The cetacean colonists, of course, had learned to use their share of technological resources, but these tools had never become a central part of their sense of themselves or their world. They continued living without any physical or psychological dependence on technology. More importantly, however, their newfound ability to think like, and communicate with, humans gave them the oppa'rtunity to help their fellow colonists discover a similar technology-free way of life. Indeed, the Athena Project's ingrained tradition of deference to expertise resulted in cetaceans assuming leadership roles in many new communities and settlements. It was this social transformation that characterized the years immediately following the Abandonment, and it was the crash ofthe Calypso, the colony's last functional shuttle, that marked the end of this/ transitional period. With the loss of the Calypso, the colonists no longer had the capability to reach orbit, and as such, the colony lost its ability to maintain its satellite network. Most crucially, this resulted in the steady degradation of the colony's communications resources, and subsequently, the Athena Project's identity as a coherent colony. In the fifty years that passed between the loss of the Calypso and the arrival of the UNSS Adm. Robert Perry in orbit around Poseidon, the Athena Project colonists continued to develop their relationship with their new world. The colonization of Poseidon's countless islands continued in an ever-expanding circle centered on the Haven Cluster. Despite hardships and tragedies, the new "natives" of Poseidon prospered, and the human population of this alien world continued to climb beyond all expectations. As expected, the natives' high-tech resources continued to dwindle, and their ability to do without them continued to improve. By 2165, the former colonists of the Athena Project and their descendants had adapted to a technological level and way of life reminiscent of the traditional peoples of Earth's Pacific Islands. CUlIURf Ann PSYCHOlOGY As is always the case when discussing the characteristics of a group of people, it is often tempting to generalize and stereotype to the point of attributing identical characteristics to all of the individual and unique societies and cultures within a population. One should always bear in mind that the native peoples of Poseidon are diverse and heterogeneous, and such generalizations are made at the risk of inaccuracy. The reader is encouraged to study the profiles of individual native communities for an illustration of their tremendous diversity. Nevertheless, their unique history and nearly eighty years of isolation and self-sufficiency have given the natives of Poseidon their fair share of cultural and psychological idiosyncrasies. Their perceptions of themselves, Poseidon, and Earth all point to a markedly different worldview from that shared by most of the new wave of Earth-born colonists. THE NATIVE VIEW Native communities exhibit a very strong emphasis on cooperation. The mundane tasks of day-to-day life are approached cooperatively, children are raised and educated cooperatively, property is usually based on an informal system of communal ownership, and individuals demonstrate a remarkable willingness to both ask for and lend assistance whenever it is needed. Obviously, this characteristic has its roots in the earliest history of the Athena Project, and if anything, has only become stronger and more deeply entrenched in their traditions. By contrast, in their relations with outsiders, native communities are often characterized by a strong sense of collective selfreliance. Native communities are usually fiercely independent: tT are extremely reluctant to ask for outside assistance and deeply resentful of any unwanted interference. These communities are also quick to take offense when confronted with condescending attitudes and presumed superiority, as many GEO and Incorporate functionaries have discovered since Recontact. Another product of the natives' historical experience is their emphasis on integrity, honesty and personal honor. A native's word carries a great deal of obligation and commitment. On the other hand, honor and trust are typically viewed as privileges that must be earned, and unfortunately, many natives relate to the newcomers with a great deal of distrust and suspicion. These characteristics may be traceable to the deeply ingrained professional attitudes and values of the scientific and technical elites that founded the original colony. The culture and society ofthe native Poseidoners is also marked by their unique notions of personal privacy. Again, these cultural traits are typically traced to the experience of Poseidon's first colonists. In the early years of the colony, the colonists' survival was very much in question. With their population hovering around 5,000 and completely isolated from any contact with Earth, the colonists were compelled to adopt a strong ethic of intimate cooperation. They were forced to live and work closely simply to survive the savage and alien world they had adopted. As a result, the natives tend to be relatively open both emotionally and physically. Native Poseidoners will often weep, laugh, rage, or exhibit other emotional displays publicly, and have difficulty understanding or sympathizing with the discomfort this causes newly arrived colonists. There is almost no concept of the traditional family unit in many native communities, and many of the roles usually ascribed to that institution in Earth cultures are instead shared by the community as a whole. Child care is predominately a communal activity, and interpersonal relationships within the community are often considered a collective responsibility. For example, difficulties between a mated couple will often be shared with the community as a whole, and offers of assistance or mediation 002.47
B L U E P LAN E T are generally welcomed by the individuals involved. This lack of emphasis on personal privacy is also evident in the natives' physical openness. The nativ~s are not at all embarrassed about their bodies, and nudity is rather common during the hottest times of the year in the low latitude regions of Poseidon. The fact that all but the most loosely fitting apparel will often interfere with the functioning of a native's gills also contributes to this tendency. RILAIIONS BITWIIN DIYIRS AND SQUID While a few communities are composed only of divers or squid, the vast majority of native communities include members of both subspecies. In general, relations between divers and squid are amicable, though there tends to be a strong division of labor along subspecies lines. The gilled osmoforms are typically given responsibility for extended uIiderwater tasks, such as most aquaculture and underwater construction, while divers are responsible for deep-water work and surface tasks, such as hunting and fishing. While a formal institution of marriage is uncommon in most native communities, extended interpersonal relationships are, of course, quite common. Most such pairings are between members of the same subspecies, but there are no general taboos against the pairing of divers and squid. The GenDiver engineers who created the aquaforms foresaw such possibilities. In male offspring, since the determination of an aquaform's subspecies is entirely dependent upon the mother's modified chromosomes, genttic incompatiblily is not an issue. In female children, since both parents contribute X chromosomes, specific artificial sequences deactivate the genetic contribution of one member of the modified X pair. Which X chromosome is deactivated is completly random and is·initiated by the lower levels of testosterone in the developing female embryo. IHI NAIIYIS AND POSIIDON The natives' view oftheir adopted homeworld has been strongly influenced by scientific tradition, and a stubborn pragmatism is a defining feature of the native worldview. Many Earth-born colonists forget that the "natives" of Poseidon are the descendants of a scientific and technical elite. Most natives approach life as a challenging task t~r! completed through careful planning, hard work, and det/~~ination. The natives' relationship with the planet is characterized by a healthy sense of competition, but also a deep respect and reverence. In recent generations the native culture has, as a result, also been characterized by a strong spiritualism. For many natives, Poseidon has a kind of quasi-sentience, a view reminiscent of the Gaia hypotheses of Earth's late 20th Century. The oceans, for obvious reasons, are central to this worldview. Natives tend to a cyclical view of life, which, like the tides, comes in paired highs and lows. References to water and the oceans abound in their dialect, and the sea and its symbol, the circle, are common images in native art. This facet of the natives' culture and psychology is often the most difficult for newcomers to grasp, and is also the most common source of misunderstanding between the two popu002.48 lations on Poseidon. For all their relatively "primitive" technology, traditional lifestyles, and often deep spiritualism, the natives of Poseidon are not a primitive people. Their grandparents, many still living, were among the most respected and accomplished scientists and engineers of pre-Blight Earth, and their pragmatic, scientific worldview still provides the foundation for the complex cultures that have evolved over the last eight decades. IHI NAIIYIS AND IARTH Most ofthe original colonists' descendants, it seems, wish nothing more from Earth than to be left alone. They are neither openly hostile nor favorably disposed to the Earth or its representatives. Their only acknowledged link to Earth is a steadfast recognition of the lessons of history, and their consequent responsibilities to their adopted world. In addition to this silent majority, there are many natives who have become embittered by the experiences of Recontact. These natives may harbor an intense dislike of the Earth-born colonists, but either have too much to lose or feel they are effectively powerless to actively oppose Earth's exploitation. Many of these may be willing to harbor fugitives from GEO or Incorporate justice, or even secretly provide aid to anti-Earth insurgents. There are also an increasing number of natives who actively and openly oppose the newcomer presence on Poseidon. These natives demonstrate little concern for GEO or Incorporate authority, and many have become involved in increasingly frequent acts of violence and terrorism. These violently anti-Earth natives often organize into small, unified groups around a shared goal, conviction, or leader. In other cases, whole native communities may be characterized by violent, anti-Earth sentiments. The native tribes of the Sierra Nueva Cluster are an infamous example, and tribal elders apparently began preparing their people for an inevitable war with the "Despoilers" long before Recontact. It is unknown how such radical traditions could evolve within a society founded by scientists and technicians in such a relatively brief period of time. Some historians have suggested that the Sierra Nueva may have been used as an exile colony for the violently insane in the early years of the colonization effort. A common rumor circulating on Poseidon is that the natives of the Sierra Nueva and similar peoples have been manipulated by Poseidons' aborigines. There is little solid evidence for either of these claims. Finally, there are also a significant number of natives who have embraced and welcomed Recont~ct. These natives are very much in the minority, representing only a small portion of the native population. Most suffer a kind of second-class citizenship and are often indentured to the Incorporate. These natives invariably live in the co1<;>nial cities, as opposed to the traditional native settlements and communities, enjoying lives of technological ease limited only by their typically meager financial resources. These limitations are often considerable, and an overwhelming sense of desperation is a com-
mon characteristic of those natives who struggle to integrate themselves into newcomer society. The lifestyle they idealize is extremely expensive, particularly for a culture that has survived for nearly 80 years on subsistence agriculture. Their powerful desire to meet the perceived standards of their adopted society leads many of these natives into a life of petty crime. The native ghettos in Poseidon's major cities are often unsafe, as thievery, prostitution, and the illegal drug trade are all on the rise. Unfortunately, these natives often suffer the prejudice of both the newcomers and other natives, who perceive them as sell-outs and traitors to both their own heritage and to Poseidon. l(CHnOl06Y Among the native communities of Poseidon there is little that could be classified as a technological standard. The natives have learned to adapt what they have to the task at hand. They are remarkably efficient in their use of tools and resources, and always try to find new uses for any equipment that has worn out or been replaced. The high-tech legacy of the Athena Project is still very much in evidence in many native communities, as the colonists quickly developed a strong tradition of recycling and adapting their technological resources for new applications. Salvaged industrial plastic and other materials, much of it having once been part of the Cousteau's modular components, were used in the construction of native dwellings and other structures. Radar systems were stripped from nonfunctional aircraft and used in make-shift weather stations. Fuel cells and turbines were stripped from vehicles and machinery to power small, handcrafted boats. Scrap metal was reforged to produce simple tools and implements. Fuel tanks can be found in many villages serving water cisterns. Fiber optic cable, one of the tec nological foundations of the Athena Project, is 0 en used as a component in fishing nets. Poseidon is also rich in the simple resources required by a traditional culture, and the natives use a variety of indigenous woods, clays, seaweeds and grasses in the construction of everyday necessities, from tools to dwellings. For example, the sands of Poseidon's beaches have an extremely high silica content, mostly due to its high concentration among the biosphere's corals and seaweeds. As a result, the sand makes remarkably good glass, and this is a common material for many household items, including bowls, cups, o NTH E FRO N TIE R 002.49
8 L U E P LAN E T pipes, and even chopsticks. Glass-blowing has enjoyed a resurgence on Poseidon and has sparked an interest ~mong the more wealthy newcomers in owning native-produced glassware. This has given many native communities a valuable. trade commodity with which to acquire high-tech and manufactured products. The clothing common in most native communities is stylistically similar to that of the Pacific Islanders of Earth history. Both men and women favor wraps of various styles around their waists, and most women also wear a wrap across their chest. This style of dress has been adopted for several reasons. First, it is comfortable and practical in Poseidon's hot and humid climate. Second, it is relatively simple for native tailors to fashion. Finally, it allows a free range of action on both land and water, and can be easily removed for greater speed and mobility when swimming. The cloth itself is often purchased in larger towns and settlements. There is, however, a local fabric, arid like many of the natives' products, it is an algae-based resource. Water hemp is a long thin seaweed that grows in the sunny shallows near Poseidon's land masses. This plant is characterized by its long resilient fibers which maintain their suppleness even when removed from the water. The fibers can be spun to produce a thin, strong thread which is in turn woven into a light airy fabric. Alternatively, water hemp fiber can be beaten and felted, after a fashion, to produce heavier cloth. Water hemp cord is also braided together to make resilient ropes that maintain their integrity even after repeated immersion into Poseidon's seas. This cord is also used in the construction of the fishing nets that are so important to the prosperity of native villages. Finally, water hemp, as well as many indigenous grasses, is also used in the crafting of items such as baskets and roof thatch. Almost all natives rely heavily on the use of boats. While they are, of course, extremely strong swimmers, distance and cargo capacity are still issues~ Boats have become integrated into almost every aspect of native life: work, trade, recreation, ceremony, shelter, and, of course, transportation. Native water craft can be characterized as those modern boats acquired in Poseidon's major settlements, those constructed by the natives themselves, and those that are hybrids of the two. The modern, mass-produced craft purchased in large settfements like Haven and Second Try are usually the least common and most difficult to distingu~hfrom othe~, simila~ boats. Most of the native communities o~seidon possess at least one such craft, often an inflatable dinghy with a small electric motor. Some settlements also possess one or more hard-hulled, prefabricated craft, though vessels of this. kind are far more common close to the major settlements. It should be noted that these boats are not always purchased, ·as among those native peoples who have reacted to Recontact with violence, boats are considered among the most valuable spoils of war. More extreme native groups have even been known to steal boat~ from the harbors of Poseidon's major settlements. 002~50 The natives are also adept at constructing their own boats from indigenous materials. Such craft are powered by sails, oars or multiple paddles. Sail boats of all sizes and descriptions are most common, and even the small oar powered fishing boats typically have auxiliary or emergency sails on board. These craft include outrigger canoes and sailboats of varying sizes, as well as catamarans and trimarans. Hulls are often made of animal skins, which are treated with plant tars and stretched over a frame of timber spars and gunwales. The skins are maintained through regular applications of various animal oils, which help to prevent dehydration and cracking, and also seal the wooden frame against moisture. Salvaged and modified boats are also common, and include anything that, with a little work, can be turned into a serviceable craft. Such salvaged craft are hodgepodges of cobbled together items from a variety of sources. For example, the fuel pods of orbital shuttles are often used as floats for large houseboats, and it is not uncommon to see the undercarriages of defunct hovercraft serving as hulls for larger craft. Salvaged boats are also likely to have rebuilt and reconditioned engines or patchwork sails. nAIIUf SflllffllfnlS Though no two native villages are exactly alike, most do share some common characteristics. Most settlements have been consciously designed to integrate ecological harmony and practical efficiency. Of course, to an outsider, a native settlement may appear little more than a random collection of wooden dwellings, scavenged steel supports, piece glass windows, and plastic sheet greenhouses~ Salvaged or· purchased technology is almost always present, even if it is little more than a radio, a solar panel, or plastic pier. A number of settlements have communications systems, including computers, with which they stay in contact with distant settlements. Some very prosperous settlements may even have a hydroponics lab or small fuel cell generator. The sites of native villages in the Storm Belt are most often selected for the protection they provide. Villages built in the cones of dormant volcanoes or the recesses of canyonlands are common in the stormiest latitudes. There are usually many fissures and tunnels through this terrain leading to the village, and these are often barricaded with wooden gates and fences to help protect the village from the planet's more curious and aggressive predators. The dwellings themselves are often large, multistoried structures, open to the breezes to keep them cool during the daytime. Their construction is simple and efficient, and somewhat representative of many Asian architectural traditions. A frame of indig-
o NTH E FRO N TIE R enous timber or cane is filled in with either thatched seaweeds or mott and daub to seal the structure against the elements. Roofs are either thatched, or made of wooden planks or salvaged materials such as industrial plastic sheeting and corrugated metal. Dwellings are often arranged in a circle, usually around a central community area and fire pit. Outside of this circle are the secondary structures, such as smokehouses, rabbit hutches, and pig pens. The tunnels passing through the cone often lead down well-worn paths to the settlement's docks, which may have one or more outbuildings for storing nets and tackle, or processing fish. These paths also typically lead to the settlement's beaches and algae pens. Another, much less common, type of settlement in the Storm Belt is built within large cavern systems. Such villages can be found both in terrestrial caverns as well as in rare, air-filled, underwater caves, accessible through long, twisting submerged tunnels. Families typically share larger fooms or caverns, though with the traditional family unit's general lack of importance in many communities, this is by no means always the case. A central cavern serves as the communal gathering place where much of the village's collective activity takes place. In the submerged caverns, mollusks and crustaceans may be farmed in smaller side caverns, and there may be additional rooms where meats and seaweeds are dried and stored. These communities are also very likely to include cetaceans, and one or more large underground lagoons are typically reserved for their use. Settlements outside the Storm Belt are much more freeform. These are more representative of what many outsiders think of as "typical" native villages; timber and thatch huts, hodgepodges of expensive high-tech and salvaged equipment, lots of boats, and a relatively large population living in pastoral splendor on white sand beaches. Dwellings typically rest on risers, though their height will depend on the structure's distance from the shore and the community's proximity to the Storm Belt. The dwellings are most often arranged in a semi-circle fronted by the shoreline. Several docks usually jut into the water with the fish pens and kelp fields a short distance away. Secondary structures often form a loose ring around the primary dwellings. Where electricity is unavailable or unwanted, handcrafted wood or cane flambeaus will be anchored in the sand at various intervals, providing light for the community after sunset. The most unusual settlement type, found primarily in regions outside the Storm Belt, are floating towns, where boats, rafts, and barges are lashed together into an ever-changing, nomadic community. These settlements are typically nestled safely within a cluster ofsmall islands or reefs. Some of these dynamic settlements have existed for decades, and can approach size of terrestrial towns. Such older settlements have, for il!ractical purposes, lost their nomadic nature, and as whole units, have not moved in years. However, even the older floating villages remain dynamic as organic material rafts decay quickly on Poseidon, and require constant repair and replacement. AQUACULTURE AND AGRICULTURE Most native communities are firmly rooted in a tradition of subsistence agriculture. Most settlements practice some form of animal husbandry, in addition to the cultivation of various seaweeds and algae. Indigenous, semi-domesticated fish are a common sight and are usually penned near the kelp fields with nets and, less commonly, electric fences. Many natives selectively breed these fish for various traits, such as size and meat production. Rabbits are also common in many villages, simply because of their high ratio of meat production to mass. A settlement's hutches are almost always communal property, though individuals with a special talent for caring for the animals will sometimes be given greater responsibility for them. Like rabbits, marine iguanas are also raised in (aquatic) hutches, and the genetic modifications they received on Earth have made them extremely viable food sources. Iguanas require very little space and are fairly omnivorous. With minor genetic adjustments, their fecundity was enhanced and now they are a primary source of animal protein in the native diet. In fact, the iguana was perfectly suited for the environment of Poseidon. The temperatures are ideal, and the iguana is naturally a strong swimmer. The iguana has forced some less aggressive native scavengers and herbivores out of their niches, and has in turn been largely ignored by most predators. As a result, the iguana population exploded in the early years of the colony, and in 2199, it is a rare sight indeed to find even the smallest outcropping of reef or rock without a dozen or more of the reptiles basking in the sun or grazing on seaweed. Pot-bellied pigs are also very common on Poseidon. Also omnivorous, the pigs are satisfied eating just about anything. The meat produced, while a bit greasy, is quite flavorful. A favored feature of most native celebrations, festivals and ceremonies, its hardy nature and large litters make the species an ideal food source. Fishing, however, is the nutritional mainstay of most of Poseidon's natives. Every conceivable form is practiced, and techniques vary based on the waters and the species being fished. Netting is the most common practice. Purse seining and gill netting are common in deeper water, and cast nets are used to catch the smaller fish species and other swimming creatures that school in the shallows. Handlines and deep ocean long lines are used to catch larger fish, while traps, pots, and weirs are used to capture an endless variety of fish, crustacean and shellfish species. Spearfishing is also pervasive as the natives are supremely adapted to this activity. Spearfishing allows the natives to take some of the large game fish that might otherwise destroy a net or trap. Native spearfishers usually hunt near the reefs and shores, as open ocean predators are are simply too dangerous to risk encountering. Some native groups also hunt the marine mammaloids and non-fish species of Poseidon's oceans. The caneopoise, or sunburst, is the most commonly hunted animal, and it provides a 002.51
B L U E P LAN E T wide range of resources. While many zoologists fear that the caneopoise will eventually be hunted into extinction, the newcomer poachers who hunt the animal for its valuable hide are the real threat to its existence. LIFESTYLE In many ways, the daily life of the Poseidon natives resembles that of historical, pastoral societies. The natives plan their lives around the storm seasons. During the calms, agriculture, hunting, and fishing proceed in earnest, and daily life is active and full. When the storm season approaches, the natives move out of their hunting and fishing camps into more secure settlements. There they weather the storms, subsisting on preserved food while making and mending equipment, tools, and clothing for the coming season of renewal. The average native's day begins at dawn, the adults rising from their beds with the sun. Those adults assigned to the fishing fleet load their boats and depart. Others remain behind to tend the algae plots, the crop fields and the livestock. The children rise early as well and often assist with the morning chores. The rest of their day, however, is devoted to learning and play. Education is highly valued, as would be expected in a culture descended from scientists and other highly educated individuals. Quite often, formal learning is combined with light chores and practical tasks, and children begin to learn about their environment at a young age, through their day to day interactions with it. They learn by watching their elders and asking questions, as well as through specific instruction. While practical learning is emphasized, the scientific foundations of their activities, such as hydroponics, animal husbandry, biology, ecology, and chemistry, are equally important, and part of their daily lessons. Since Recontact, many ofthe larger and more prosperous native communities have begun importing computers and other technology in an effort to improve their educational resources. Some communities have even begun sending promising children to the GEO-sponsored schools in the major settlements, while others have begun hiring Earth-born teachers for local schools. Most of Poseidon's major settlements are in the tropics, ~aving the Storm Belt in favor of more hospitable temperatures. Such communities often enjoy a traditional siesta, reminiscent of those of Latin American cultures on Earth. A native's lunch is usually light, consisting of spiced seaweed and smoked fish. In some settlements, the boat crews return at midday, while in others, they remain on the ocean until late afternoon. These fishermen often break for midday dives in the cooler water. Evening is a time for community. The natives take turns preparing a communal dinner, usually the largest meal of the day. The staple seaweeds and fish may be supplemented by pork, iguana, and rabbit. Prosperous settlements may also enjoy a variety of hydroponically grown fruits and vegetables. There are also many indigenous fruits, vegetables and herbs gathered by native communities, but cultivation is usually restricted by limited land area. 002.52 After dinner, native communities enjoy a time of social interaction, as leisure time accompanies the light chores that remain at the end of the day. Nets are repaired, sails and clothing are sewn, and the natives, like people everywhere, gossip and trade stories. Often boat crews return to the sea at sunset to reset nets, drop crustacean traps, and make a few spearfishing dives. RITUAL AND CEREMONY The fact that Poseidon's natives are descended from scientists and technicians has done little to inhibit the development of cultural traditions, rituals, and ceremonies. Many anthropologists suggest that this fact is not at all surprising, as these traditions would have helped to support the sense of communal identity and cooperation that was so important to the survival of the original colonists. Births are an extremely important occasion for any native village, as they represent both a validation of past struggles and a renewed hope for the future of the community. Births are' celebrated with several nights of feasting and revelry, culminating in the immersion of the newborn into the sea. This is a symbolic baptism, as well as a practical test of an infant's diving reflex. This first immersion is called the Welcoming Ceremony among most native groups. Likewise, death is treated with a great deal of ceremony, as the body is returned to the ocean that welcomed it at birth. Cremation is universal among native cultures, and floating pyres launched to sea are most common. There is a great deal of feasting and toasting at a native's wake, during which the friends and family with which they shared their lives will reminisce and share stories of the departed. There is very little mourning, and ironically, the entire event closely resembles a birthing celebration. The largest, and by far the most revelrous native celebration, is the week long festival called Planetfall. This event is a joyous time in which everyone is encouraged to forget the hardships of life and enjoy the hope, community and bounty of the planet. The festival honors the anniversary of the the original colonists' arrival on Poseidon and culminates with Founder's Day, a frantic and emotional celebration of the first landing. Whole villages come together for a raucous, non-stop party, reminiscent of Earth's many carnival style holidays. Coincidentally, almost one third of annual native births occur during a time that has come to be called the Baby Wave, roughly nine months after the previous year's Planetfall celebration. Though, as a general rule, the natives of Poseidon continue to be a predominantly pragmatic people, many other rituals and ceremonies have been identified within individual native communities. Traditions involving the coming of the storm season, the hunt, mating, the aborigines, and other phenomena have been reported among the more isolated native communities. Further surveys are needed to verify these reports, but the
o NTH E FRO N TIE R often extreme hostility of these native groups makes any such efforts problematic at best. Recent statistics indicate that field anthropology is becoming one of the most dangerous occupations on Poseidon. RfconlnCI nno BfYOnO In July of 2165, a young girl living in a large community on Epoch Island became the first native to locate the UNSS Adm. Robert Perry in orbit around Poseidon. The girl sighted the Perry from a simple observatory her village had maintained on the slopes of the island's dormant volcano. Almost 70 years late, the promised resupply mission from Earth had apparently arrived. In the first years after Recontact, very little changed for the vast majority of the native population. Many welcomed the technological and pharmaceutical resources brought by the GEO representatives, and few newcomers strayed from the major settlements. For the most part, the newcomer presence on Poseidon was so small and unobtrusive as to almost escape notice. That began to change, gradually, as several Incorporate states began importing personnel to Poseidon to explore the possibilities for economic exploitation of the planet's resources. Nevertheless, Poseidon seemed to have little enough to offer to any but the scientific community. For twenty years, it appeared as though Recontact would have little impact on the native population of the waterworld. All that changed 2185 when an Atlas mineral survey discovered the new class of minerals classified as xenosilicAs, popu1arly known as Long John. When the minerals' applications in biotechnology became apparent, the oceans of Poseidon became the focus of an exploitative "gold" rush unrivaled in human history. In 2185, the human population of Poseidon was just over 60,000. In 2199, it stands at more than 1.8 million. The enormous influx of newcomers to Poseidon, along with the competing interests that accompanied them, has led to increasing tensions with the descendants of the Athena Project colonists. The first truly violent confrontation between natives and newcomers occurred in 2189, ironically, in the very same community that had been the first to sight the Perry. After a deep-sea survey identified a rich Long John node near Epoch Island, Biogene representatives approached the island's native inhabitants with an offer to purchase the rights to these deposits, as well as permission to build an off-shore harvesting and refining facility. The offer was unequivocally refused. Less than two weeks later, the village's docks and most of their small fishing fleet were destroyed in an explosion. Three natives were killed in the blast, and a dozen more were seriously injured. Several days later, the Incorporate representatives returned to the village and repeated their offer. A native fisherman named Kuahei, the father of a child who was killed in the explosion, shot and killed one of the representatives with a speargun. In the ensuing clash, the entire Biogene delegation was killed, along with Kuahei and four other natives. The community whose young astronomer had been the first to welcome Recontact also became the first native people classified as "hostile" by the GEO and Incorporate states. Since this incident, the tensions between the natives and the newcomers have continued to increase. The most serious conflicts have occurred between aggressive native groups and those Incorporate states who refuse to recognize the legitimacy of the natives' claims to Poseidon. Much of the problem lies in the fact that the politics of colonization were never formalized after the initial Athena Project mission, as the attention and resources of Earth were diverted to the developing crisis caused by the Fischer Blight. The original UN mandate gave the administrators of the Athena Project the authority to grant property rights to the colonists, but after the Abandonment, such legal issues, understandably, lost their significance. As far as the Incorporate are concerned, no legitimate political authority was originally present on Poseidon, and the natives' claims are entirely without legal foundation. The problem is compounded in that the GEO defends a claim of governance over the colony since the launch of the Athena Project in 2086. The GEO is primarily concerned with maintaining the peace and the integrity of the biospheres over which it governs. However, the resources of Poseidon promise too great a hope for the future of Earth for the GEO to ignore them. In its efforts to arbitrate, patrol and protect, the GEO has made both friends and enemies among Poseidon's various native groups. Caught in the midst of growing tensions and brush war violence, all interests recognize that the stern presence of the GEO may be all that keeps Poseidon from erupting into a true war zone. Officially, the GEO is firmly committed to preserving native rights in the face of Incorporate' expansion. In practice, the GEO has fallen back on its historical foundation of political authority by using environmental policy to restrict Incorporate activity on the planet. As one example, the GEO has since denied Biogene's request to build its refining and harvesting facility offshore of Epoch Island because it would endanger the spawning waters of several indigenous fish species. While most natives recognize and appreciate the GEO's motives, they publicly protest the message this sends: that the rights of fish have more weight with the GEO than those of the natives themselves. As this crisis continues, the natives of Poseidon are becoming increasingly divided. There are those natives who seek to protect themselves by working within the legal framework provided by the GEO. This attitude is most common among Poseidon's larger native communities. They are often the ones receiving political, financial, and legal assistance from nonviolent, Earth-based environmental and political action groups. Other native groups refuse to recognize the authority of the GEO. Many of these groups are becoming openly hostile to 002.53
B L U E P LAN E T the GEO, the Incorporate, and the national governments who have established a presence on the waterworld. Though still in the minority, these groups are a potentially formidable threat and are beginning to receive backing from extremist groups on both Earth and Poseidon. Native attacks on GEO and Incorporate personnel and facilities are becoming increasingly common, and there has even been sporadic violence between hostile natives and independent newcomer settlements in the colony world's outlying regions. Most natives simply wish to be left alone, to continue the lives they have built for themselves over the last century. They see the newcomers as a threat to their way of life and to their adopted world-for most of them, the only world they have ever known. They are outnumbered by more than twenty to one, and their technological resources pale in comparison to those commanded by their adversaries. Many respond by retreating further and further into Poseidon's wilderness, while others conspire in the shadows of the newcomers' own settlements. Regardless, they all fear a day will come when there will be no place left for them to run, and force of arms will be their only hope. 002.54
o NTH E FRO N T I I I / I ./ -... . 002.5
B L U E P LAN E T 002.56 Roleplaying cetacean characters can be a very challenging and rewarding experience. This section is intended to provide players and game moderators with an overview of uplifted cetaceans and their role in the world of Blue Planet. In 2042, capitalizing on the tremendous breakthroughs in cetacean communication achieved by Dr. Marcos Gottfried, the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institute, in cooperation with Johns Hopkins University, successfully uplifted the first dolphin subjects to full sentience. At a time when genetic engineering and neuro-viral therapy were in their infancies, this accomplishment stunned the scientific community and captured the attention of the world. The first decades of the 21st Century had been a difficult time for cetaceans. The last known humpback whale washed ashore in Hawaii, hailing the extinction of the great whale species. Most of the rarer, open ocean dolphin and porpoise species had not been encountered for decades, and even the common and bottlenosed dolphins were rapidly declining in number. The killer whales, once common in cold waters world wide, had also begun to vanish. Eventually, only those few pods uplifted at Woods Hole, and at a small number of similar facilities around the world, were all that remained. Relations between sentient cetaceans and humans were tense, almost from the very beginning. Possessed of an intimate, spiritual relationship with the natural environment, cetaceans looked upon the ecological destruction wrought by humans with horror and incomprehension. The fact that humans were essentially responsible for the extinction of all but a few cetacean species did not exactly endear human society to them either. The first generation of genlifted cetaceans retained the memories of their primal existence, remembering when they had shared the oceans with the great whales. Most perceived humans as genocidal and brutal savages.. The cetaceans were victims of extreme social prejudice and legal discrimination as well. The unalienable "human rights" of which society was so proud did not seem to apply to the newly sentient animals, who therefore had no real place in the human social order. Legally, they were often able to claim stronger protections by virtue of endangered species legislation than by the limited civil liberties granted them as new world citizens. Ironically enough, genlifted cetaceans found their initial acceptance in the world's military forces. Indeed, the navies of several major nations had been experimenting with dolphins in various military applications for decades, and it had been defense funds that had, in part, supported the Woods Hole
o NTH E FRO N TIE R efforts. Cetacean soldiers served in search and rescue teams, reconnaissance units and as special operatives. Unfortunately, even these opportunities were marred by deep-seated discrimination. In many armed forces, cetaceans were eligible for only the lowest enlisted ranks and were never: promoted. In practice, they were often viewed as materiel rather than soldiers. When the Athena Project was launched, the UN selected 500 cetaceans to participate in the colonization effort. It is estimated that well over eighty-five percent of the world's cetacean population volunteered for the Project. The opportunity to begin a new life on a pristine ocean world seemed a chance at spiritual redemption. Poseidon became a promised land that would finally free them from a world scarred by pollution and prejudice. The Athena Project marked a profound division within the culture of the uplifted cetaceans. The dolphin and orca colonists, while facing extreme hardship and challenge, did indeed find their promised land. On Poseidon, they found a life and a world they could share with humans, and they were offered the chance to participate in a common social endeavor in which they played a crucial role. The cetaceans who remained on Earth, however, were destined for a very different future. Like all the other peoples of Earth, the Blight left indelible marks on their minds and souls. While their counterparts on Poseidon were exploring new freedoms and possibilities and forging new relationships in human society, the cetaceans of Earth were trapped in a nightmare of war, disease, starvation, and wholesale environmental destruction. In 2199, this divergent experience has resulted in two distinct cultures characterizing the native and the newcomer cetaceans on Poseidon. While the natives are more deeply spiritual (and, some newcomers would say, incomprehensible), they nevertheless find it easier and more rewarding to interact with humans. They have forged intimate relationships with the humans who share their communities, and rarely have any preconceived prejudices against newcomers. They are, for the most part, willing to trust humans, giving them the benefit ofthe doubt. The Earth-born cetaceans, on the other hand, harbor a fundamental distrust of human nature. Most believe that humans are inherently greedy and destructive of the natural world, and that the Blight was simply the latest manifestation of this pathos. While most came to Poseidon as soldiers in the GEO and Incorporate armed forces, they hope that the colony world will eventually offer them the chance to completely isolate themselves from their fellow newcomers. In several cetacean units around the planet, a kind of racial militarism is taking root. For many of these cetaceans, distrust has been transformed into racial hatred, and some believe that Earth-born cetaceans should join with the native pods to permanently rid Poseidon of the human newcomers. The recent and increasing defections of cetacean soldiers to several hostile native groups is only one symptom of this growing sentiment. Whatever their destiny holds, cetacean hopes rest with Poseidon and its future. For most, Earth was part prison and part graveyard, a slow death of human design. The GEO Armed Forces have enjoyed tremendous gains in cetacean recruitment on Earth, simply because most cetaceans see military service on Poseidon as their chance of escape. The cetaceans arguably have the greatest stake in Poseidon's future. For them Poseidon is their last hope for redemption, salvation, and grace. DOlPHins ANATOMY AND PHYSIOLOGY Modern, genetically uplifted, or genlifted, dolphins are primarily of bottlenosed stock (Tursiops truncatus), and they are commonly referred to as Tursiops sapiens in the media. The dolphins themselves seem to find this title immensely amusing. The morphology of most genlifted dolphins resembles that of the coastal ecotype of the species. They average 3 to 4 meters in length and weigh between 250 to 450 kilograms. In most cases, adult males are somewhat larger than females. Dolphins have a sleek, streamlined form, and their coloration is typically a soft gray to grayish green or brown dorsally, fading to white or pink ventrally. When their ancestors left the land and entered the seas some 40 to 50 million years ago, they began an evolutionary process which has culminated in a modern form that is particularly suited to life in an aquatic environment. A dolphin's pectoral flippers have all of the skeletal characteristics of land mammals including individual but flattened finger bones. Dolphins use their pectoral flippers 'to steer when swimming and are also capable of a surprising range of subtle gestures that help them to communicate with humans when technological assistance is unavailable. The horizontal lobes of a dolphin's tail are called flukes, and are composed of tough, fibrous tissue completely without bone or muscle. Muscles along the dolphin's back are used to move the flukes up and down, propelling them through the water. The dolphin's centrally located dorsal fin is made of tissue similar to that of the flukes, and acts as a keel to stabilize the dolphin as it swims. Dolphins have an enlarged, rounded "melon" which acts as a kind of "acoustic lens" for focusing and transmitting echolocation signals. Dolphins have a well-defined snout, or rostrum, marked by a lateral crease, and their lower jaw is structured to aid in receiving the dolphin's "echoed" signals. Genlifted dolphins typically have between 80 and 100 conical and interlocking teeth. Their eyes are on the sides of their heads, near the corners of their mouths. Their ears, which have no external flaps, are small openings just behind their eyes. A dolphin 002.57
B L U E P LAN E T 002n58
o NTH E FRO N TIE R breathes through a single blow hole on the dorsal surface of the head. A dolphin's physiology is well adapted to the aquatic environment, and they served as the first models for the aquatic modifications of humans. They can swim almost effortlessly for considerable distances at speeds between 8 and 10 kilometers per hour, and can manage short bursts up to 40 kilometers per hour. Though most dives do not exceed 50 meters, dolphins are capable of diving to depths in excess of 500 meters without technological assistance, and they can remain submerged for up to thirty minutes, when necessary. A dolphin's blubber and highly adapted circulatory system allow them to maintain a comfortable body temperature even when diving in cold waters. Modern dolphins eat as much as 15 kilograms a day, preferring various species of fish, which are swallowed whole. A dolphin's lifespan can exceed 50 years with access to adequate medical care, and as with humans; lifespan is indefinite with regular longevity therapy. PSYCHOLOGY Though there are countless stereotypical portrayals of dolphin psychology in the media, in truth, these creatures' psychological and personality traits vary as widely as humans'. However, as a species, dolphins demonstrate a number of distinct psychological characteristics, just as humans do. Dolphins tend to a somewhat poetic and philosophically complex view of the world. This world view has been at times described as holistic, animistic, and pantheistic. Though any interspecies communication of such fundamental notions as make up a world view is extremely difficult, it would seem that dolphins do not experience their environment in terms of the subject-object dichotomy that characterizes all human sensory experience. It is also thought that dolphins do not share the distinct barrier between the subconscious and conscious mind that characterizes human cognition. Researchers have even tried to relate this theory to the dolphin's unusual sleeping habits: one hemisphere of a dolphin's brain sleeps while the other remains semi-active and conscious. A sleeping dolphin will lie floating in the water with one eye open and the other closed. Periodically, the dolphin will switch, allowing the other hemisphere to rest. Some psychologists have suggested that genetic uplift served only to "bracket off" a small corner of the dolphin mind, allowing them to function on a conscious level more similar to humans. This more structured, orderly consciousness, in turn, allows dolphins and humans to communicate more meaningfully. Interspecies communication could as easily have been achieved, these researchers claim, by altering the human brain in such a way that the conscious-subconscious barrier was weakened or dismantled. The dolphin's mind is uniquely suited to conceptual and analytical tasks. Most can accomplish at will the sort of mental feats that have been likened to an idiot savant's capacity for almost instantaneous calculation, or the "eureka effect" that many scientists and scholars experience in relaxed states, when the conscious-subconscious barrier is lowered and there is a kind of "free play" between both cognitive faculties. Unfortunately, new discoveries and insights into the dolphin mind often introduce more questions than they answer. For this reason, a truly adequate understanding of dolphin cognition, both before and after genetic uplift, will require a great deal more research. Regardless it is certainly safe to say that there are radical differences between the ways dolphins and humans think and experience the world. It is clear, however, that genlifted dolphins remain as playful, mischievous, and impulsive as their primal ancestors. Dolphins are notorious for their love of pranks, and their behavior is typically not as constrained as that of most humans. Quite often, a dolphin's pranks will be dangerous, and sometimes lead to injury. For example, many dolphins seem to find it endlessly amusing to jam human navigational sonar with barrages of echolocation pulses, even when their "fun" threatens the safety of the vessel. To say the least, dolphin behavior is unpredictable. Most who have frequent interactions with human groups, however, have learned to abide by more conventional standards of behavior. Dolphins are also famous for their sexual appetites. It is estimated that up to one-third of a primal dolphin's waking hours were devoted to the pursuit of sex, and this inherited tendency is constrained among genlifted dolphins only where necessary. Dolphin young typically begin pursuing sexual relations at the age of six weeks or less, long before they have reached reproductive maturity. Homosexual activity is very common, and the first couplings of young dolphins will typically involve their mothers and aunts. It is also well known that dolphins are fond of sexual contact with humans, though most humans do not welcome such encounters. The promiscuity and homosexuality of dolphins is usually accepted in human groups, but their propensity for incestuous and iriterspecies relationships are a common source of social friction. SOCIOLOGY Socially, dolphins exhibit sharp distinctions based on their past experiences. Those native to Poseidon are predominantly gregarious, outgoing, and fun-loving creatures who are very fond of human company. Friendships between native dolphins and humans are quite common, and native dolphins are often more favorably disposed to the newly arrived colonists than are native humans. Earth-born dolphins, including those on Poseidon, typically exhibit contrasting tendencies. It is thought that their experiences during the aftermath of the Blight may have soured them on human companionship, or humans in general. Most of the Earth-born dolphins found on Poseidon are, or have been, in military service with the GEO, and it is thought that their military training, indoctrination, and experiences may have had a considerable impact on their socialization. On Earth, primal dolphin social organization was remarkably 002.59
B L U E P LAN E T transitory. The role of motherhood is perhaps the dominant value in dolphin society. The most stable social groups are those organized around females and their offspring. By contrast, male dolphins play almost no part in the care and raising of their offspring. Likewise, the image-names of male dolphins are often near-copies of their mothers', translating to something like "so-and-so's offspring." Female dolphins always create their own image-names that are distinct from their mothers'. Typically, young dolphins will remain close to the female members of their immediate family for a year or more, after which it is common for them to switch social groups, almost on a daily basis. Dolphins claim that this migration is an important part of the early education and socialization of dolphin children. Once she reaches sexual maturity, a female dolphin will often rejoin her mother's pod. Males, on the other hand, typically form small fraternities of three to five dolphins. For primal dolphins, the purpose of these fraternities was largely sexual, as it was through these alliances that males would compete for the attentions of females. The pursuit of sex remains a strong motivation for genlifted males, but these fraternities are also frequently based on professional ties. Humans have used this feature of dolphin sociology to organize everything from military units to scientific research teams. Dolphin fraternities are characterized by extremely strong and durable bonds of friendship, and they typically last throughout the lives of their members. On some occasions, especially on Poseidon, human membership in these fraternities has even been observed. Usually, this occurs at the request of an established fraternity, but in some cases, solitary dolphins entering human associations have attempted to organize the group along fraternal lines. While aspects of these social tendencies remain characteristic of dolphin society on Poseidon, the small population requires some compromise. For the most part, the familial groups of females and the fraternal groups of males serve as the core of wider social memberships, typically based on profession. Within an Incorporate research team, a GEO military unit, or a native community, these family and fraternal groups are the foundation of the dolphin's social life. CULTURI For obvious reasons, dolphin culture is closely tied to their social characteristics. Likewise, their sentience has indelibly marked their social organization and relationships. However, the social life of genlifted dolphins has taken on characteristics and tendencies that were impossible or meaningless in the wild. Scientists have used this distinction to draw a line between purely social and specifically cultural institutions and values. One of the most widely publicized features of dolphin culture, on both Earth and Poseidon, is their refusal to take linguistic names for themselves. Dolphins seem to believe that human naming conventions serve to make an object of the one who is named, and they have tried to avoid it entirely. While dolphins do have so-called "image-names" for themselves, symbolic representations that can be exchanged and interpreted through 002.60 dolphin communication, these image-names are notoriously difficult to translate into human language. On the other hand, humans require some means of identifying dolphins if the two species are to have any kind of meaningful social interaction. As a result, dolphins adopt some form of professional title to identify themselves in human society. Titles like Soldier, Doctor, Scout, Teacher, Prospector, or Diver are common, as are more offbeat titles like Killer, Dreamer, or even Juju Man, in the case of at least one dolphin spiritual leader of a settlement on New Jamaica. Whether rooted in traditional meanings or slang, dolphin titles will almost always have some connection to professional affiliation. This has caused some difficulty for dolphins engaged in criminal activity. If a law enforcement officer encounters a dolphin calling himself Gangster or Privateer, a thorough investigation is likely to ensue. Most dolphins have found ways to skirt this difficulty, however. For example, a dolphin engaged in the drug trade is likely to call himself Peddler, rather than Dealer, if only to avoid the incriminating connotations. By far, the most widespread dolphin cultural institution is their religion. The Church of Whalesong Theogony was founded in 2063 by Preacher, a first generation genlifted dolphin in San Diego. Few human researchers have been able to make any sense of the faith whatsoever, but a few of its basic tenets have been documented. Whalesong Theogony is firmly rooted in the cetaceans' primal history. It seems to glorify various instinctual and physiological experiences, from the diving reflex to the mating ritual. Some human researchers believe this obsession with the primal is dangerous, in that it serves as an obstacle to the development of cultural institutions firmly rooted in the cetaceans' experiences since uplift. The religion appears to involve a narration of Earth's evolutionary history, expressed through a difficult and obscure form of epic poetry. The dolphins claim that this epic begins when the first whales, the supposed authors of the narration, returned to the oceans some 60 million years ago. Though few human researchers lend any credence at all to the claim that great whales were creating epic, naturalistic poetry in the distant past, parts of the narration have been translated and are open to some intriguing interpretations. For example, one sequence apparently refers to seals and sea lions as "young hunters." Interestingly, scientists have long believed that seals and sea lions are among the youngest of the marine mammals, having evolved from the first carnivores to reenter the oceans some 15 million years ago. Did the great whales witness this event and add new lyrics to their epic to commemorate it? Most dolphins seem to think so.
HlllfR UlHAlfS o NTH E FRO N TIE R their social relations and natural behavior. ANATOMY AND PHYSIOLOGY Modern, genlifted killer whales are descended from Orcinus orca, the primal killer whales. The genlifting procedure for killer whales focused on development of the neocortex, which allows for higher-level cognitive capabilities, and a cultivation of the orca's already advanced social and cooperative behavior. A male killer whale will average between 7-8 meters in length and weigh between 3,500-5,500 kilograms. Females are somewhat smaller, averaging between 5-7 meters and weighing between 1,500-3,500 kilograms. Killer whales share the sleek, streamlined form of dolphins, but their coloration is far more striking and distinctive. The dorsal surface and pectoral fins of an orca are black, with the exception of a gray saddle pattern behind the dorsal fin. The ventral surface and lower jaw are mostly white, while the undersides of the tail flukes are white fringed with black. There is also a distinctive white eye spot located just above and slightly behind each eye. A killer whale's physical form is very similar to a dolphin's. An adult male's pectoral flippers can grow up to 2 meters long and 1 meter wide. Their tail flukes will measure up to 2.7 meters from tip to tip. The adult male's dorsal fin is tall and triangular in shape, often reaching a height of nearly 2 meters. A female's dorsal fin is somewhat smaller and may curve slightly toward her tail. A killer whale's rostrum, or snout, is far less pronounced and distinct than a dolphin's, and they have significantly fewer teeth, averaging around 50. However, these teeth are approximately 7.5 centimeters long and 2.5 centimeters in diameter. Like the dolphin's, they are conical and interlocking, designed for grasping and tearing rather than chewing. Like all cetaceans, orcas are well adapted to life in the water, and they are among the fastest marine mammals. They are capable of short bursts up to 50 kilometers per hour, but more commonly swim between 3-10 kilometers per hour. While they will typically dive to depths between 30-60 meters, they are capable of diving as deep as 300 meters without technological assistance. A killer whale will usually remain submerged between 4-5 minutes when diving, though they are capable of diving for as long as 20 minutes. Orcas eat as much as 45 kilograms per day. A male's lifespan can exceed 50 years with adequate medical care, while a female can live up to 90 years. As with humans, regular longevity therapy can prolong an orca's lifespan indefinitely. PSYCHOLOGY Genlifted killer whales are considerably less intelligent than their dolphin cousins, and their psychological makeup is also thought to be far less complex. Plodding, methodical thinkers, killer whales are nonetheless able to respond with terrible quickness when they react instinctively. An orca's psychology is largely dependent upon the classification of SOCIOLOGY Resident killer whales are highly social, peaceful creatures that interact very well with humans. On Earth, primal residents once gathered in pods of 50 or more based on familial relationships, feeding on a variety of fish and aquatic vegetation. Resident killer whales will often be content with a lifestyle very like that of primal orcas and usually lack the personal motivation to become concerned or involved in human affairs. Earth-born dolphins are fond of referring to these killer whales as "Civilized" and often develop long-lasting friendships with them. Resident pods are structured according to a matriarchal hierarchy. Each pod usually consists of an aged matriarch and her offspring, who usually spend their entire lives intheir mother's group. Pods will sometimes split if they become too large, or merge if they become too small, but each pod has a distinctive primal dialect. This dialect is unique enough that even human scientists can use it to identify the social membership of individual orcas. Transient killer whales are somewhat anti-social, aggressive, nomadic hunters. The favorite foods of their primal ancestors were other marine mammals, including whales, porpoises, dolphins, and seals. For obvious reasons, modern transients have had to curb some of these appetites. They travel in hunting pods that rarely exceed a dozen members, mostly male, and they sometimes join resident pods during the mating season. Genlifted dolphins have an instinctual fear of transient orcas and commonly refer to them as "Savages." Most dolphins, of course, are reluctant to acknowledge any such fear, claiming instead that they are merely embarrassed by their cetacean cousins' primitive antics. While primal transients did not share the same loyalty to a fixed territory as their resident brothers and sisters, their pods were nonetheless characterized by advanced social organization. It is believed that organization and cooperation were absolute necessities for the orcas to successfully hunt the larger baleen whales. With genetic uplift, transient orcas most readily adapted to life in human military organization on the basis of these social tendencies. CULTURE Many of Earth's resident pods have exhibited very little cultural development since the Woods Hole-Johns Hopkins Cetacean Project. For the most part, they remain devoted to the ties of family and community, and are rarely willing to leave their home waters in pursuit of human goals. The lifestyle of most resident orcas is therefore largely indistinguishable from their primal ancestors. Their waking hours are dominated by feeding, playing, mating, and various other social activities. The only real cultural development that human researchers have identified among resident orcas relates to the care and raising of the young. As with dolphins, this duty was the exclusive province of females in primal orca communities. In recent years, male orcas have begun to take a greater role in the 002.61
B L U E P LAN E T care of their children. It has been suggested that this phenomenon is one aspect of an emerging emphasis on more formalized education among resident killer whales. Fathers spend some portion of each day with their offspring, particularly their male offspring, instructing them in subjects ranging from the history of the species to hunting techniques and mating practices. Some researchers have claimed that this development represents a cultural achievement that even dolphins have not matched, the institution of true fatherhood. Transient orcas have adapted most easily to interaction with the human world. The social cooperation of their primal ancestors has evolved into a deep-seated "teamwork ethic" that allows them to function smoothly and efficiently in human groups. Transient orcas are most comfortable in structured, almost rigid, social groups, where cooperation is a much more powerful motivation than ,ompetition. They perform admirably in professional group~----with a clear hierarchy and in which each member of the group has a carefully defined role. Because of their intellectual limitations, transient orcas have most often found the opportunity to become involved in such groups within military organizations, but this is by no means always the case. Orcas have participated in such cooperative professional groups as research teams developing underwater technologies and exploring the wilds of Poseidon. As with dolphins, spiritual life is important to both resident and transient orcas. While many killer whales are devotees of the Whalesong, most human researchers believe the Church is dominated by dolphins. It is unclear whether this is true. It may just be that dolphins are more capable of communicating their spiritual beliefs and values to humans. Nevertheless, it certainly appears that most ofthe positions ofleadership within the Church are filled by dolphins, and some researchers have suggested that orcas are portrayed as antagonists in some parts of the Whalesong epic. Because primal orcas hunted whales and dolphins, this is not entirely surprising. However, both orcas and dolphins have insisted that the hunting orca is just one of many powerful images in the Whalesong epic, that it is part of the history of the oceans, and that the epic does not attach the moral judgments to this image that humans do. Creating cetacean characters can be challenging, and will require players and game moderators to cooperate in customizing the character generation process. "This is especially true in the assignment of skills and skill values. While the character creation guidelines were designed primarily with human characters in mind, most of the Profile and Profession options are available to cetacean characters as well. Rather than limit cetaceans to a limited number of "cetacean templates," Blue 002.62 Planet offers guidelines for adapting the existing options to the unique needs and characteristics of cetacean characters. When looking at the skills offered by various Profile and Profession choices, it will be obvious that many are not suitable to cetacean characters. For example, few cetaceans should be expected to learn Sailing, and fewer still will have had any experience in Mountaineering. If the skills provided by a particular Profile or Profession option are not appropriate for a cetacean character, the game moderator should allow the player to substitute a more appropriate one. Obviously, what counts as an appropriate skill is ultimately at the discretion of the game moderator. There are a couple of qualifiers to keep in mind when customizing Profiles and Professions for cetacean characters. First, the fact that a cetacean might not be physically capable of performing a given skill does not necessarily mean that he will be entirely unfamiliar with it. For example, cetaceans are unlikely do a great deal of parachuting, though some dolphin special ops units are an interesting exception. However, a cetacean character with extensive training and experience in a special forces unit is likely to know something about parachuting simply by virtue of having been exposed to it. While the skill level that would normally be assigned to a human character would be inappropriate, the cetacean player may still want to have some points in the skill to reflect this knowledge and experience. Second, the cybernetic technologies available to cetaceans allow them to perform a wide range of tasks that would otherwise be impossible. Cetacean characters can master a variety of skills, including Electronics, Computers, Mechanics, Mining, First Aid, and Painting. Don't assume that just because a skill would ordinarily require manual dexterity it will be offlimits to cetaceans. TECHNOLOGY As mentioned above, cetaceans enjoy a wide variety of sophisticated technologies that have been developed to meet their specific needs. These technologies include sonic trodes, cybernetic weapons harnesses, and perhaps most importantly, CICADAs. A few examples of how cetaceans can integrate specific skills with this technology should be helpful to game moderators and players alike. Cetaceans would use Computer Operation to access computers, just like humans, but they would typically do so through the use of sonic trod~s. Like humans, cetaceans have to be trained in Hacking to access secured computers or networks. With cybernetic devices such as micro-tool kits, cetaceans can also perform Computer Repair or Engineering, but these tasks typically require a specially constructed environment or the use of remotes. Cetaceans should use the Mechanics Operation skill to pilot CICADAs and hover drones. In addition, Electronics Operation will be necessary to use the sensor systems often installed
o NTH E FRO N TIE R in these machines. Cetaceans use the Gunnery skill to fire weapons mounted on CICADAs, hover drones, and cybernetic weapon harnesses, and game moderators should allow the players of cetacean characters to switch skill points from other weapon skills to Gunnery, since this is the only way cetaceans are trained to effectively use modern firearms. UFESTYU The material needs of cetaceans are entirely distinct from those of humans. Unlike humans, cetaceans do not depend on durable or consumer goods, arid most prefer to live in the open water rather than enclosed dwellings. Cetaceans do, of course, require food. While most prefer to hurit just as their ancestors did, many simply do not have the luxury of this time-consuming task. On both Earth and Poseidon, there are businesses in many coastal cities and settlements that provide food for cetaceans. Likewise, any professional organization with cetacean personnel will have the resources and facilities to feed them. For the sake of convenience, most cetaceans have adopted the mealtimes of the humans with which they live and work. In any case, beyond the necessity of food, cetaceans need and desire few material possessions. They have no use for cars, boats, fur coats, jewelry, or exercise equipment. Many necessarily require the cybernetic equipment that allows them to fully access the human world, and these devices are often their only, but prized, possessions. While most do not require dwellings, they do need a secure place where they can keep this equipment when they are not using it. Many also require a place to perform tasks not suitable to a fully aquatic environment. Again, most coastal cities and settlements offer structures that are a combination of temporary residence, storage room, and workshop. Likewise, professional organizations that employ cetaceans, from the GEO to the Incorporate, provide similar facilities for their cetacean personnel. Cetaceans typically refer to these areas as "workspace." The physical layout of the typical workspace is distinctly amphibious and heavily automated. Usually, the workspace will be partially submerged, allowing the cetacean to remain in the water while working with equipment that is safe and dry within the structure itself. The workspace is often controlled by a central maincomp, which the cetacean can access through a sonic trode or other interface. This computer will control typical functions, such as climate, lighting, and communications. The computer will commonly be linked to a number ofsimple robots and other automation that the cetacean can use to transfer objects from the water to the workspace, or to work with dry equipment and delicate devices. For the most part, cetacean workspaces are utilitarian. Cetaceans seem to have no desire to decorate or personalize these facilities, and they can usually be distinguished only by the function of the equipment they house. Similarly, the workspace is a place to pursue one's professional tasks, and is to be otherwise avoided in favor of the comforts of the open ocean, family, and friends. TRANSPORTAIION Because of the radically different environment to which they are adapted, transportation has been the greatest obstacle to the smooth integration of cetaceans into human society. Obviously, it is difficult for cetaceans to travel on land, and impossible without the use of expensive, bulky equipment. For most cetaceans, the hover drone component of CICADAs has offered an acceptable compromise with this limitation. With audio/visual equipment and a variety of other features, hover drones allow cetaceans to follow their human friends and colleagues most anywhere they go. Direct links to a hover drone are only possible over relatively short distances, but satellite uplinks and signal relays allow cetaceans to send their hover drones virtually anywhere. These drones are also the primary alternative to long distance transportation for cetaceans. D.ue to their size and life support needs, it is problematic and expensive to transport cetaceans long distances. While there are commercial air and rail carriers on Earth that offer service to cetaceans, they are rare and expensive. Unfortunately, these carriers are even more uncommon on Poseidon. The GEO Armed Forces and several Incorporate states are among the few organizations with the necessary resources. While special MHD harnesses and other technologies are available to allow cetaceans to travel more quickly, most are content to remain at home and allow their hover drones to take their places on long journeys. COMMUNICAIION Cetaceans were capable of basic communication with humans even before genetic uplift, but this communication was simplistic and rather one-sided. Dr. Marcos Gottfried is credited with surpassing this original and limited interaction and developing the basics of modern Interspecies Language, or Interspec. Cetaceans are able to comprehend human language, and have actually demonstrated impressive linguistic ability, but their anatomy prevents them from easily pronouncing most human sounds. Conversely, humans are entirely unable to comprehend the subtleties of dolphin vocalizations, and have even more dificulty with pronunciation. Accordingly, Interspec is an odd language, one humans need only understand, and one cetaceans need only "speak." The language consists of a variety of simple human words, natural vocalizations and gestures easily made by cetaceans and easily understood by humans. In practice the language is difficult for humans to learn, but it is a valuable and effective form of communication. Because the language is difficult and somewhat limited, some cetaceans have turned to modern technology for an alternative. In 2199, there are few cetacean newcomers to Poseidon who do not possess a translation computer. This streamlined device is typically mounted on a light harness or attached directly to the user's skin with·organic adhesives. These translators function much like those used by humans. The integrated sonic trode allows the cetacean's vocalizations to be processed into human speech by the computer, which then outputs the human translation through integral speakers. Unfortunately, these devices are far from perfect, and their translations often range from the humorous or crude to the incomprehensible. While translators are common among newcomers, most native cetaceans still communicate exclusively through Interspec. 002.63
B L U E P LAN E T on 002.64 The Global Ecology Organization has maintained a continuous presence on Poseidon since the Adm. Robert Perry arrived in orbit in 2165. This presence has expanded from a few scientific teams clustered in the Pacifica Archipelago to thousands of GEO personnel and dependents stationed throughout the waterworld. The relationship between the GEO and Poseidon is complex and fraught with conflict. Even the history of the relationship is disputed. The GEO claims 119 years of support and governanceof the colony, dating from the UN's Argos 12 mission in 2080. Native activists argue that the GEO's claim on the colony ended with the Abandonment in 2096. Political opinions aside, no one dissagrees that the GEO plays an increasingly important role in the daily affairs of every colonist on Poseidon. John Bishop, the Colonial Administrator, heads the Office of Colonial Affairs and is the higest ranking GEO official on Poseidon. Each of the GEO High Commissions is represented by a Deputy Commissioner who is responsible for his Commission's assets and activities on the colony world. The Deputy Commissioners are, in principle, subordinated to the Colonial Administrator, but in practice, they enjoy a great deal of autonomy with which to pursue their responsibilities. Currently, the Deputy Commissioners hold regular meetings at the Government Center in Haven to coordinate their efforts. Given the colony's relatively loose administrative structure, however, the level of this cooperation is completely dependent on the personalities ofthe Deputy Commissioners and the leadership ofJohn Bishop. HUMAN RESOURCES The HCHR maintains an extensive presence on the colony world. This Commission has primary responsibility for providing the colony's many settlements with educational resources, disaster relief, and development assistance. Education continues to be one of the GEO's top priorities on Poseidon. Currently, organized elementary and secondary schools exist in the vast majority of newcomer settlements, though most of them are quite small. Most of these schools have been built and maintained with direct support from Human Resources. The Commission oversees the schools' curricula, provides funding, and supplies teaching materials, computer equipment, CommCore access, and many other valuable resources. In addition, Human Resources coordinates several programs that bring well-trained and enthusiastic teachers to these settlements. Poseidon is an often savage world, and disaster relief is one of the most valuable services provided by Human Resources. In addition to coordinating the development oflocal fire and flood protection in settlements throughout the colony, the Commission maintains several Emergency Response Teams. These highly trained teams respond to natural disasters and accidents and perform a variety of search-and-rescue functions. The Teams' actions are coordinated by Anastacia Flores, the Emergency Response Manager on Prosperity Station.
o NTH E FRO N TIE R The ERTs are well-publicized and enjoy a great deal of support from the colonists, newcomer and native alike. Natives account for more than 150/0 of all ERT personnel, and an additional 10% are Earth-born cetaceans. The ERT service is one of the few GEO programs that enjoys wide-spread support from native colonists. An ERT Training Camp was established in 2188, but it has since been supplanted by the Poseidon Training Academy. The Academy is tasked with training suitable candidates for all nonmilitary positions within the GEO hierarchy, including the ERTs. Human Resources' goal is to eventually recruit 75% ofthe GEO's colonial staffing requirements from the local population. Human Resources is also charged with providing development assistance to the colony's settlements. The Commission provides financial and technical assistance for a wide range of public projects, including power grids, waste disposal systems, desalinization plants, hospitals and medical clinics. NATURAL RESOURCES The HCNR's primary role on Poseidon is to regulate the booming economic exploitation of the planet and investigate violations of GEO environmental statutes on the colony world. The HCNR is allowed by law to send Environmental Inspectors to all industrial sites on the planet. This includes Incorporate facilities and operations, though the details of Incorporate treaties with the GEO may stipulate further conditions on these inspections. There have been occasions when inspection teams required the assistance of Marshals and even GEO Peacekeepers to gain access to Incorporate facilities. The HCNR also maintains a network of global surveillance satellites in Poseidon orbit, similar to the Commission's EarthWatch network. These satellites have been remarkably effective in identifying environmental violations, and have also provided valuable scientific data on Poseidon's ecology. Environmental Inspectors also visit colonial settlements on an infrequent basis. The inspection teams look for many of the same things they do at an industrial site, including sanitation and'environmental overload. Even where problems exist, these inspections do not often result in legal action. The data is usually turned over to Human Resources so that a solution can be implemented. SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY The HCST's presence on Poseidon is one of the most extensive of any GEO Commission. There is a growing horde of scientists on the planet, as botanists, zoologists, geologists, meteorologists, oceanographers, and researchers from countless other fields scatter across and below the planet's surface. Science and Technology is responsible for coordinating and funding many of these research efforts. The Commission founded the Haven Institute of Science and Technology in 2188, and the WSNs Darnel Observatory, an orbital facility named for a GEO astronomer, became operational in 2195. The HCST has also established an underwater research facility called GEO Prime near the Zion Islands. The laboratories at GEO Prime focus on the research of Poseidon's marine life, including the aborigines, the planet's tectonic activity, and the nature and origin of xenosilicates. More than 25% of the GEO personnel stationed at GEO Prime are dolphin scientists and orca technicians. COMMUNICATIONS It has been the monumental task of the HCC to develop the telecommunications infrastructure of the frontier colony. The Commission has established a network of communications satellites in orbit, and has also installed a local CommCore network. Though it remains significantly less sophisticated than the one on Earth, the network's growth is pacing that of the colony as a whole, and most every newcomer on Poseidon carries at least a bodycomp with full CommCore access. Communications on the planet can nevertheless be somewhat unreliable, for reasons partially outside the HCC's control. The planet's furious surface storms can sever communications with outlying settlements for weeks at a time. Even where storms do not occur, Poseidon's often-dense cloud cover, and its attendant electrical activity, frequently render satellite communications unreliable. INTERNAL SECURITY Though the HCIS maintains offices on Prosperity Station, not even the Colonial Administrator knows the extent of the quietly growing IS presence on Poseidon. Incorporate activities on the planet have been a major concern for the Executive Council, and Astumo Nakano, the current High Commissioner, has brought his legendary "Black Crusade" against the Incorporate to the waterworld. STATE AND INTERNAL AFFAIRS The SIA is confronted with one of the most difficult tasks confronting any GEO Commission on Poseidon. It is the SINs responsibility to maintain peaceful relations between the GEO and the colony world's many competing factions, including the Incorporate, the natives, and· the independent colonists. SIA maintains consular offices in many Incorporate company towns, including Cliffside, Santa Elena, and AI-Mamlakah. Additional consulates exist in Poseidon's major colonial settlements as well, such as Haven, Second Try, and Kingston. SIA Envoy Teams are charged with identifying and contacting previously unknown native communities. When such a settlement is discovered, the Envoy Team evaluates its needs and negotiates with its leadership for GEO services and protection. The Envoy Teams are also trained to provide basic medial care, from the inoculation of children to the instruction of settlers in basic first aid and emergency procedures. After first contact has been established, these duties are typically turned over to Human Resources. The Office of Colonial Affairs is an SIA agency, though John Bishop, the Colonial Administrator, actually outranks the SIA Deputy Commissioner on Poseidon. The OCA is responsible for the general administration of the colony and for coordinating the efforts of the Deputy Commissioners. While the OCA is headquartered in Haven's Government Center, each 002.65
B L U E P LAN E T of Poseidon's major settlements maintains an OCA office. The OCA is charged with the management of all immigration to Poseidon. The backgrounds of prospective immigrants are screened electronically, but this process is notoriously easy to circumvent. The OCA also supervises the briefing and medical procedures that each immigrant must undergo, and maintains the passenger receiving facilities on Prosperity Station. All new colonization efforts must be approved by the OCA. Such efforts must be carefully planned according to established guidelines, which include zoning restrictions and population ceilings. Any expansion beyond these initial settlement plans must receive OCA approval. In practice, of course, there is almost no official supervision of many settlements on Poseidon. The OCA's limited personnel and resources are simply insufficient to keep pace with the colony's explosive growth. ARMED FORCES There is a heavily-reinforced brigade stationed on Poseidon, under the command of Luther Gideon, a Marine Corps Lieutenant General. The brigade includes three companies of Peacekeeper Special Forces (the Blue Berets), a company of Marine Corps Heavy Cavalry (Shock Troops), and three regiments of Peacekeepers. The total strength of this infantry force is approximately 5,000. Support from the GEO Aerospace and Naval Commands includes VTOL strike-fighters, patrol jumpcraft, missile hydrofoils, and fighter-subs. The primary downside military base is near Kingston, New Jamaica, but many of the Peacekeepers are dispersed in company-sized garrisons around the planet. Spread-out and isolated, the Peacekeepers are in a situation similar to that of the US Cavalry in the 19th Century American West. This analogy, of course, has escaped the attention of neither the popular media nor the soldiers themselves. JUSTICE The GEO has assigned" three Magistrates to the Poseidon colony. Each of them commands eight Marshals and the GEO Patrol personnel and resources within their jurisdiction. The Justice Commission is planning to expand the GEO's law enforcement presence on the waterworld as resources become available. Currently, even with the assistance of specialized Peacekeeper units on loan from Armed Forces, the GEO has insufficient personnel to effectively maintain the peace in many isolated areas. The municipal facilities of Poseidon's major settlements include permanently maintained offices for Magistrates, Marshals, and their support staffs, as well as detention facilities. Most of these settlements also have at least one Patrol precinct. All but the most isolated settlements have designated offices that can be used by the Magistrates. On a rotating schedule, a Magistrate, accompanied by one or more Marshals, will hold court in the settlement. The Magistrate hears any civil cases that have been filed since his last visit, and also conducts any necessary criminal trials. These facilities usually include a small jail, though the most violent or dangerous prisoners are held locally only until a Marshal can be dispatched to transfer them to Prosperity Station. 002~66 The GEO Marshal Servl·ce The Marshal Service was established by the UN during the early years of the Blight. More than one hundred years later, it has become a powerful federal police organization with a major presence throughout Earth and the Colonies. Each Marshal stationed on Poseidon answers to a Magistrate and commands one or more Deputy Marshals. In addition, they have command authority over local Patrol personnel. For the most part, local law enforcement is the responsibility of the Patrol precincts in Poseidon's major settlements. Marshals and Deputy Marshals are typically involved in large-scale investigations, from terrorism to organized crime. Marshals are also frequently in charge of investigating alleged violations of GEO statute by member states, including the Incorporate. The Marshal Service maintains offices in most of Poseidon's major settlements, including Prosperity Station in orbit. Marshals have the authority to act with a great deal of independence, though they are always answerable to their Magistrate. When not engaged in a major investigation, Marshals spend much of their time circulating between the offices in their district, overseeing local law enforcement efforts, and pursuing investigations at their discretion. The GEO Patrol Just as on Earth, local law enforcement in Poseidon's major cities and settlements is the responsibility of the GEO Patrol. The Patrol's organization is similar to that of police agencies throughout the modern era, except that each precinct ultimately answers to a GEO Magistrate. Patrol Officers have a wide range of typical law enforcement responsibilities within their jurisdictions, from traffic violations to homicides. In practice, the Patrol is so understaffed and poorly funded that many crimes on the frontier colony are not even investigated. For example, there are less than 1,000 Patrol Officers on duty in Haven, a city of more than 500,000 people. All too often, there is a sort of "triage" in effect in the Patrol precincts. Officers focus on violent crimes, such as assaults, rapes, and homicides, and ignore the countless other criminal activities, from small-time drug trafficking to property crimes, that plague Poseidon's major settlements. The Native Patrol In an effort to address the critical shortage of law enforcement personnel on Poseidon, as well as to generate goodwill among the native population, the Justice Commission created the Native Patrol in 2193. The goal of the Native Patrol is to establish a legitimate law enforcement presence among those native settlements and areas that have resisted both Incorporate and GEO intervention. Members of the Native Patrol are trained in standard law enforcement procedures, and are authorized to draw upon GEO Patrol and Marshal Service resources when necessary. Native Patrol officers have developed their own traditions and are fiercely loyal to their own people. Initially intended as an official GEO presence within the native population, the Native Patrol is in practice a native presence within the GEO hi-
o NTH E FRO N TIE R 002.67
B L U E P LAN E T erarchy. The first loyalty of a Native Patrol officer is almost always to his community, and cooperation with GEO authorities is typically viewed as a necessary means to a desired end. In most areas, the relationship between the Native Patrol and the GEO is cordial and cooperative, if not exactly friendly. In· others, there is almost no contact whatsoever between local Native Patrol officers and the GEO chain-of-command. Law Enforc•••nl ••. P.selel•• The most crucial problem confronting the Justice Commission on Poseidon is not the shortages of personnel and resources, which are real enough, but the issue of what laws apply to the colony world. Shortly after Recontact, the General Assembly approved a bill that applied all GEO laws to Poseidon, but this action has been caught up in a fair amount of controversy and ambiguity. As has already been noted, many native activ.ists deny the GEO's claim of a continuous presence on Poseidon since the launch of the Athena Project. These voices of dissent have been joined by those ofthe Incorporate and Independent governments, each of whom have a stake in loosening the GEO's grip on the colony world. Politics aside, colonists on Poseidon face many issues and situations·that are simply not addressed by any of the laws that were drawn up on Earth. One of the most dramatic is the legal status of the apparently sentient aborigines. Another is the natives' right to property for which they have made no legal claim, but have occupied, in some cases, for more than 100 years. These problems, and others like them, are compounded by the fact that, while the executive branch of the GEO has a strong presence on Poseidon, the colonists as yet have no voice in the General Assembly. While not the only problem confronting law enforcement on Poseidon, the lack of sufficient personnel and resources is certainlya major obstacle for the Justice Commission. As noted above, the Marshal Service typically focuses on major investigations, while even the Patrol Officers in major settlements are forced to ignore a wide range of criminal activity. In isolated or outlying settlements, a village constabulary, the Native Patrol, or a wandering Marshal may be the only law. Likewise, GEO law enforcement officials are rarely seen in the company towns, where the only law is that enforced by Incorporate security. The result is pretty typical of any frontier society from the pages of history, though not quite so romantic. In many cases, colonists are responsible for their own protection. Private citizens often carry sidarms and other weapons, as the law gives them a great deal of room to protect themselves and their property. On Poseidon, self-defense is both a very strong legal defense and an important right for every colonist. On the other hand, the right ofself-defense is just that: it should never be mistaken for a license to kill. If a burglar is shot and killed by a law-abiding homeowner, the Patrol is more likely to thank the citizen than to bring him in for questioning. Indeed, due to the Patrol's priorities, petty criminals face the wrath of their victims far more often than that of the Justice Commission. But a colonist who seeks out and kills someone 002.68 he·believes has wronged him will be prosecuted to the full extent of the law. The average colonist has a great deal of freedom on Poseidon, but there are seldom running gunfights in the streets of Haven. TRADE AND INDUSTRY The HCTI has a growing presence on Poseidon, resulting from the xenosilicate boom and the colony's accelerating industrial development. It is the HCTI's task to manage the economic exploitation of Poseidon in accord with GEO statute. The Commission works with private corporations, Incorporate states, other Commissions, and individual settlements to implement long-term development strategies, and funds countless programs designed to bring the colony to economic self-sufficiency as quickly as· possible. In the meantime, the HCTI also coordinates with the OCA to schedule and administer regular resupply efforts from Earth. The HCTI is typically the Commission with the least popular support among the colonial population, despite the crucial role it serves. Its poor public image is likely the result of its relationship with the Incorporate states. The Commission's position is a difficult one: on the one hand, it has a responsibility to promote the economic welfare of both the colony and Earth. As has been the case throughout the last century, that welfare is largely dependent on the Incorporate powers. On the other hand, Trade and Industry is as much a GEO High Commission as Natural Resources or Justice. It is firmly committed to the standards of environmental responsibility and human rights on which the GEO was founded. Many colonists, native and newcomer alike, fail to realize that the HCTI is often most responsible for curbing the excesses of the Incorporate states on Poseidon.
o NTH E FRO N TIE R 002.69
B L U E P LAN E T THE 002.70 Since the discovery of xenosilicates in 2185, the Incorporate states of Earth have driven the exploitative rush on the colony world. In 2199, the Incorporate are a permanent fixture of life on Poseidon, and their activities continue to have a profound effect on the political, economic, and social makeup of the frontier planet. ANASI SYSTEMS Colonial Holdings: None Though its longevity therapies, biomods, and health care facilities have lifted Anasi to the forefront of the biotechnology field 'on Earth, it has not yet established a colonial presence on Poseidon. Currently, Anasi contracts with several rival Incorporate states, including Biogene and Atlas, for the xenosilicate ore it requires for its products, services, and research programs. However, there are persistent rumors that Anasi intends to acquire one or more private, Earth-based corporations with experience in deep-sea mining operations. The entry of yet another major player into the Long John industry has several GEO Commissions concerned about escalating conflict between rival Incorporate states. The fact that Anasi is the only Incorporate state to have used a nuclear weapon in a conflict makes the situation even more tense and unpredictable. Anasi is also conducting a careful survey of Poseidon in hopes of finding a satisfactory location for a new "luxury arcology" similar to the Xanadu complex on the island of Cyprus. The Incorporate state intends to construct this arcology on Poseidon's seafloor, hoping to capitalize on the romantic and exotic image the waterworld has enjoyed on Earth. Anasi is thought to be negotiating with both Atlas and Hydrospan for the construction of this submerged arcology. The Incorporate state's plans are meeting resistance both from the GEO and several native activist groups. ATLAS MATERIALS Colonial Holdings: AI-Mamlakah (pop. 27,500) Habib al-Muhammadi is Atlas's Chief of Operations on Poseidon. AI-Muhammadi and his deputy, Saide ibn-Fahad, are the driving force behind an Incorporate state that is poised to reap billions from mankind's exploration of the stars. Although Atlas Materials is one of the wealthiest Incorporate states, it has a relatively small downside presence on Poseidon, since the planet does not yet have the infrastructure to support a large manufacturing operation. As a result, Atlas continues to reap immense profits from the fleet of transports that ship manufactured goods and materials to and from Earth. However, the Atlas leadership realizes that colonial enterprises will only pay the huge costs of interstellar shipping so long as there is no alternative. Consequently, Atlas' presence on Poseidon is growing daily. Its major emphasis is on increasing the available construction, manufacturing and repair facilities on the colony world. Its major downside port is the town of al-Mamlakah. AI-Mamlakah is the only city on Poseidon that has the neces-
o NTH E FRO N TIE R sary facilities to build and repair large orbital shuttles and the massive fusion reactors required to power them. The majority of the ship building and manufacture of vehicles such as jumpcraft and hovercraft that occur on the waterworld ~lso take place in Atlas' industrial center. There are also limited construction and repair facilities for specialized spacecraft and heavy machinery, though the planet's orbital stations continue to provide most of these services. AI-Mamlakah's most prominent feature is its Mosque. The building's central spire is built around the control tower of the Atlas spacecraft, Jebel Chelia. Rising more than 250 meters above the surrounding industry, the tower provides a platform from which the muezzin can be heard for more than twenty kilometers across the ocean. While the vast majority of Atlas citizens on Earth are Muslim, the Incorporate state's operations on Poseidon accept independently contracted employees of any faith and ethnic background. BIOGENE Colonial Holdings: Cliffside (pop. 49,450) Ever hungry for any opportunity to turn a profit or expand its operations, Biogene was among the first generation of Incorporate states on Poseidon, and continues to playa major role in waterworld politics. Even though its major concerns fall within the field of genetics, Biogene has at least a limited interest in most commercial operations on Poseidon. The genetics giant has more than 30% ofits net worth invested on the colony world, and is one of the leading exporters of xenosilicates to Earth. Biogene is represented on Poseidon by its Executive Vice President for External Affairs, Carl d'Augustino. Born in Medillin, Colombia, D'Augustino is a graduate of the Harvard Business School. He is reputed to be a formidable opponent both at the negotiating table and below it. Having secured a position at the top of the Biogene hierarchy through marriage to one of the Ballard daughters, d'Augustino has acquired a reputation as a masterful power broker who can engineer lucrative deals both with rival Incorporate states and the GEO. D'Augustino is backed by a Board of Governors that include some of the shrewdest economists and political strategists in the system. Members of the board include a retired Major in the GEO Peacekeeping Force and a former high-level bureaucrat in the HCTI. As a result of this diversity, Biogene's leadership on Poseidon has always been aggressive and visionary. Biogene's colonial holdings and operations are widespread. They include the massive spires ofthe Ballard Building in downtown Haven, the research stations and laboratories scattered across Poseidon's surface, several undersea mining facilities located near xenosilicate deposits, and the company town of Cliffside. Cliffside is an ocean town, a collection of sturdy platforms atop concrete pilings anchored in the bedrock one hundred meters below. It gets its name from the nearness of the continental slope, which begins less than a kilometer from the center of town. In addition to its crucial role as a supply and distribution center for Biogene's operations throughout the region, it is a popular stop for tourists, and a common downside vacation spot for Biogene citizens and employees. Biogene has the largest Incorporate security force on Poseidon. Biogene Security officers enjoy state-of-the-art training and equipment, and many ofthem are genetically enhanced. Biogene Security serves a number of roles on the colony world, from law enforcement in Cliffside to the military defense of Incorporate facilities, personnel, and operations. Biogene Security is supported by a number of VTOL aircraft, patrol jumpcraft, surface vessels, and fighter-subs. DUNDALK SHIPBUILDING Colonial Holdings: Colonial Station (pop. 15,500) Dundalk's only holding beyond the Solar System is Colonial Station in Poseidon orbit. This massive facility is one of the largest orbital stations in the system, and is the center of not only Dundalk's industrial efforts on Poseidon, but its political presence as well. Colonial Station is primarily used as a supply, maintenance, and repair facility for the Dundalk spacecraft fleet, but it also boasts expanding construction operations that provide everything from orbital shuttles, satellites, and modular deep-sea habitats to the booming colonial market. Sean Kirkpatrick is the Vice President of Colonial Operations on Poseidon. The nephew of Dundalk President Annette Kilkenney, Kirkpatrick shares his aunt's vision and charisma. On Poseidon, Dundalk has maintained its reputation for fair play and responsible management, and continues to enjoy solid relations with both the GEO and its Incorporate rivals. Colonial Station is currently the center of a joint research venture by Dundalk and Hydrospan intended to develop new breakthroughs in the engineering of submerged habitats, and Dundalk is also benefiting from cooperative efforts with Atlas Materials. As Atlas continues to focus its colonial efforts on expanding its downside infrastructure and manufacturing facilities' it has allowed Dundalk to acquire many of its spacebased resources. These include several small orbital stations, shuttles, and even a few transport craft that make the run between Earth and Poseidon. As a result, Dundalk stands to become the undisputed Incorporate leader in space-based operations and technology. GENDIVER Colonial Holdings: Santa Elena (pop. 20,150) GenDiver has been one ofthe most aggressive Incorporate states in expanding its operations on the colony world. GenDiver has established numerous mining operations and refining facilities across the planet, and its somewhat adversarial approach has resulted in numerous confrontations with the GEO, the natives, and its Incorporate rivals. Since the reinstatement of the UN, GenDiver has officially refused to recognize the GEO as a legitimate governing body. It has withdrawn its representatives from the General Assembly and has repeatedly denied HCNR Environmental Inspectors access to its facilities on Poseidon. Ironically, however, its con002.71
B L U E P LAN E T frontations with the GEO have been more overt on Earth than on the colony world. The GEO's control of the wormhole, and therefore all access to the Serpentis System, makes the Incorporate state somewhat hesitant to test the GEO's limits on Poseidon. Nevertheless, Steven Crawford, the Director of Operations on Poseidon, has essentially touched off a cold war between GenDiver and GEO personnel on the planet. The SIA consulate in Santa Elena is subject to heavy electronic surveillance by GenDiver Security, as Crawford. realizes that most of the GEO personnel there are in fact attached to Internal Security. GenDiver uses this and other intelligence assets to monitor the activities of the GEO and ensure that its own operations continue uninterrupted. GenDiver has also been prone to conflict with its Incorporate rivals, particularly Atlas Materials. The hostilities between the two Incorporate states have a long history, beginning in the first years after the discovery of Long John and its commercial potential. In 2192, a squadron of GenDiver fighter-subs escorting an ore-carrying transport submersible inexplicably veered off course and launched multiple torpedoes at Undersea Habitat 1, Atlas' first deep-sea facility on Poseidon. More than 200 Atlas citizens died in the attack. While GenDiver claimed that the attack was the result of "pilot error," it refused to disclose its recordings of communications between the submersibles and the administration in Santa Elena. Survivors also testified that the fighter-subs circled the facility, making visual contact before they launched the attack. In any event, the incident touched off the first major Incorporate hostilities on Poseidon, and was the first such conflict to occur since the last years of the Blight. In 2199, Poseidon still has a reputation for lawlessness, and though deserved, things are tame compared to the years before the arrival of the GEO Magistrates and their Marshals. Bloody confrontations between GenDiver and Atlas personnel were common during this time, and hundreds of Incorporate security personnel and employees lost their lives. The violence reached a peak in 2194 when five colonial civilians were killed in a gunfight between more than a dozen GenDiver and Atlas laborers on leave in Kingston, New Jamaica. Such confrontations have become more covert, if not more infrequent. Isolated research stations are occasionally attacked, cargoes are sabotaged, research data is stolen, and GenDiver and Atlas executives are sometimes the casualties of mysteri0us circumstances. However, even GenDiver rarely involves itself in any activities that cannot be easily covered up and plausibly denied. As if to make matters worse for the troubled corporation, GenDiver has suffered more from the attentions of hostile native groups than any other Incorporate state. The natives of the Sierra Nueva Cluster seem to have taken a particular violent interest in the company. For the most part, the natives have confined their attacks to isolated research outposts, weather stations, and other small facilities, but in recent years GenDiver 002~72 shipping has come under increasingly frequent attack. GenDiver Security frequently sends personnel into the Sierra Nueva to investigate these attacks. On several occasions, these security teams have been involved in violent confrontations with natives who likely had no part in attacks on GenDiver personnel or resources. The latest of these incidents, the Stone Bridge Massacre in June of 2198, resulted in the death ofseven natives, and was well-publicized in the media of both Poseidon and Earth. The massacre has resulted in loud protest from the Haven Council and native rights groups throughout the colony. Deacon Kingsley, the prominent native activist and councilman, has referred to the GenDiver Security teams as "death squads." The incident has also prompted the GEO to expand the Native Patrol presence in the Sierra Nueva, and expand the Peacekeeper garrison on Crusoe. Most observers are unsure whether these actions will help to pacify the region or only serve to escalate the violence. Santa Elena is GenDiver's only major territorial holding on Poseidon. It is a mid-sized town on the southeast coast of Isla Verde focusing on aquaculture, biological research, and Long John refining. Security around the town is very tight, and visiting journalists have described it as an "armed camp." Visas are required to enter the company town, and applicants are subject to intensive screening and background checks by GenDiver Security. HANOVER INDUSTRIES Colonial Holdings: Lebensraum (pop. 25,650) Hanover Industries has perhaps a bigger stake in the colonization of Poseidon than any other Incorporate state. Because control of the Hanover city-state will revert to Germany in 2201, Hanover Industries depends upon Poseidon for its economic and political independence. As a result, its activities and operations on the colony world are both numerous and widespread. Lebensraum, the Hanover company town, is located on Sable Bay, on the coast of Mandalay Island about 1,500 kilometers from Haven. Founded only six years ago, Lebensraum is quickly becoming one of the largest settlements on Poseidon. Along with Atlas Materials, Hanover is leading the effort to industrialize the colony world, and Lebensraum is becoming a thriving manufacturing center. The German conglomerate has also made a concerted effort to position itself in consumer services, a sector of the frontier economy that has traditionally been dominated by small, privately owned concerns. As a result, Hanover Colonial Bank is one of the largest financial institutions in Haven, Hanover-owned supermarkets and discount stores are being opened in several of Poseidon's major settlements, and the Hazards casino in Kingston is a Hanover property. Hanover Autoworks is constructing a manufacturing plant that will turn out everything from jumpcraft to hydrofoils, and plans to open dealerships in Haven, Kingston, and Second Try when the plant is completed. The vehicle division is also constructing a number offull-service fuel stations across the colony. The President of Hanover Colonial is Werner Keinz. Keinz is
o H E T I E R .73
B L U E P LAN E T the ranking executive on Poseidon, and his office is responsible for coordinating the activities of each Hanover division on the colony world. The local operations of each of these divisions are managed by an Executive Vice President, and each of them is answerable to Werner Keinz. Keinz has been extremely careful to cultivate good relations with the Office of Colonial Affairs and the other government agencies on Poseidon, as tensions between Hanover and the GEO remain high on Earth. Keinz hopes that if Hanover keeps its nose clean on the colony world, there will be less political resistance to the transition that is coming in 2201. HYDROSPAN Colonial Holdings: New Fremantle (pop. 18,910) Hydrospan has been extremely active in the reopening of the Poseidon frontier. One of the first Incorporate states to establish a presence on the waterworld, Hydrospan's earliest efforts were devoted primarily to environmental research and a few GEO contracts for downside construction jobs. Hydrospan's Poseidon-based aquaculture research in the 2170s even paid dividends by alleviating food shortages in sev~ral regions of Earth that were hardest hit by the Blight. Hydrospan also made early contacts with several native communities, and took a leading role in providing those who wanted it with technological assistance and resources. In 2176, Hydrospan established temporary clinics around the colony that provided any native cetacean who came in with a free translator implant. The results of the effort were mixed, but it was indicative of Hydrospan's attempts to facilitate the reintegration of native colonists and newcomers. With the discovery of Long John and the ensuing colonial rush, Hydrospan began to expand its operations on Poseidon. New Fremantle was established in Poseidon's Antilles in 2189, and shares much the same architectural patterns as the Fremantle EcoDomes on the Australian coast. The town sprawls from the coastline, across and below the water, and like its counterpart on Earth, it is home to one of the largest cetacean populations on the planet. In 2199, Hydrospan's colonial operations continue to be dominated by scientific research and the construction of marine habitats. However, it has recently begun construct~ on manufacturing facilities that would provide watercraft, submersibles, underwater equipment, and cetacean accessories to the growing colonial market. Hydrospan Poseidon is directed by Steward, a dolphin executive who has served with the Incorporate state his entire life. The dolphin's choice of a title is indicative of the way he perceives his relationship to Hydrospan and to Poseidon. He treats both as a household that has been delivered into his care, and is equally concerned with the prosperity of each. As is the case on Earth, Hydrospan enjoys good relations with the GEO, and along with Atlas Materials, is awarded more GEO contracts on Poseidon than any other Incorporate state. Hydrospan's citizenry is also expanding rapidly, as both native and newcomer cetaceans are coming to New Fremantle to live and work in increasing numbers. 002~74 LAVENDER ORGANICS Colonial Holdings: Dyfedd (pop. 6,235), Caernafon (pop. 15,500) Lavender's President, Charles Crandal, was quick to recognize the potential profits of supplying the exploding consumer market for biomods and oraganic computer technology on Poseidon. The result ofthis vision was Dyfedd, Lavender's first colonial company town. Named after a region ofWales, Dyfedd was the first modern free-floating settlement on Poseidon. A modest first effort, the town.nevertheless marks a milestone in the settling of the waterworld. Dyfedd consists of a collection of interlocking, bioplastic barges that provide enough buoyancy and stability to support the town, but enough flexibility t-o withstand the formidable Poseidon weather. Each barge has integrated station keeping MHD drives, and a flotilla of powerful tugs can be used to maneuver and relocate the entire settlement as weather forecasts and research objectives dictate. Dyfedd is usually located to the southeast of Westcape Island, just beyond the southern edge of Poseidon's hurricane belt. Supported by efficient fusion and solar power facilities, high capacity desalinization facilities, and extensive hydroponics gardens, the floating city is essentially self sufficient. The southernmost settlement in the Pacifica Archipelago, Dyfedd is usually found more than 2,000 kilometers from its nearest neighbor. While the company town remains a valuable center for corporate research and development, it is becoming an increasingly important onsite lab for scientists studying Poseidon's oceans. The Haven Institute of Science and Technology has established a state-of-the-art oceanographic research facility on Dyfedd, and at anyone time, over a hundred scientists from all over Poseidon and Earth can be found working out of the floating city. Because of its unique design and pleasant summer climate, Dyfedd is also becoming a popular vacation destination for Poseidon's pampered rich. Several posh hotels have been built in recent years, necessitating the addition of two new rafts to Dyfedd's superstructure. With this lucrative and eclectic diversification of the Dyfedd facility, Lavender Organics maintains its reputation as an eccentric but successful company. Lavender's other major holding on Poseidon is Caernafon, a company town located on the northeast coast of the Highlands in the Channel Islands. Caernafon is Lavender's primary administrative and commercial center on Poseidon. To date, Lavender's activities have focused on understanding Poseidon's complex ecology and on serving the growing colonial market for biomods and pharmaceuticals. Lavender field researchers have systematically studied the native cures developed from Poseidon's indigenous plant and animal life, in hopes of finding new drugs and other organic chemicals for the markets of both Earth and Poseidon. Lavender has also committed significant resources to the study of the aborigines and the exploration of the deep-sea trench off the western coast of the Highlands. The leadership of Lavender Organics believes that the ruins found on the Dunedin Seamount offer evidence that the aborigines once had a tech-
o NTH E FRO N TIE R nological civilization and are hoping to discover revealing relics and artifacts from that era. On several occasions, Lavender research stations and submersibles have suffered what are believed to have been aborigine attacks, and the leadership accepts this as further evidence that their efforts may eventually be rewarded. MACLEOD ENFORCEMENT Colonial Holdings: None While it has not yet established a company town on the colony world, MacLeod's presence on Poseidon is growing rapidly. The vast majority of its business on the planet involves providing private security personnel, high-tech security equipment, and non-military weapons to the independent settlements of Poseidon. Dangerous wildlife, hostile natives, and violent criminals ensure that there is a steady market for these services. It is also widely known that MacLeod has contracted with several native groups to provide intensive military training to their young men and women. In most cases, these contracts are not explicitly illegal, unless MacLeod provides such training to native groups that the GEO has classified as hostile. Of course, hostile natives are precisely the ones most in need of military training, so MacLeod's activities have spurred a number of investigations within the Justice Commission. Of course, MacLeod also balances these services by supplying several Incorporate states with additional materiel and personnel. The security concern stands to benefit tremendously from increasing tensions between the various factions on Poseidon, and it has certainly done nothing to ease them. Unless MacLeod decides to build arms manufacturing facilities on Poseidon, it is unlikely that it will establish a company town on the colony world. NIPPON INDUSTRIAL STATE Colonial Holdings: Simushir (pop. 26,450) Like Hanover, the NIS has established diversified operations on Poseidon. The NIS is expanding its manufacturing facilities, and will soon be able to offer everything from marine habitats to heavy mining equipment on the colonial market. The NIS is also the largest exporter of xenosilicate ore to the Pacific Rim. Simushir, the NIS company·town, is located on the island of Ina, approximately 1000 kilometers from Cliffside. Because both Biogene and the NIS are heavily involved in mining the New Hawaii chain for xenosilicate depo~s, there has been sporadic conflict between the two Incorporate states. Simushir is a sprawling industrial complex, and its processing facilities, machine parks, and manufacturing plants are expanding all along the coast of its island paradise. Most of the NIS personnel stationed at Simushir are indentured laborers, many of them failed independent prospectors and miners. The NIS provides these employees with cheap, semi-permanent housing that is not designed to withstand fast fungus and Poseidon's harsh weather. Reliable electricity, efficient plumbing, fresh water, health care, and fire protection are also often in short supply in these satellite slums that are expanding around the central industrial center. The living conditions are so badthat they have inspired a proverb among the independent miners and prospectors on Poseidon. A miner that is down on his luck or known for poor judgment is said to be "on the road to Simushir." 002.75
B L U E P LAN E T 002.76
o NTH E FRO N TIE R While Recontact with the Poseidon colony is marked by the arrival of the Adm. Robert Perry in orbit around the planet in 2165, it was 20 years before the colonial rush truly began. Prior to the discovery of Long John, the enormous expense of maintaining a viable extra-system colony seemed to ensure that Poseidon would remain home only to the natives and a few dedicated scientists. Between 2165 and 2185, the population of Poseidon, native and newcomer alike, grew by just more than 15,000. The vast majority of these newcomers were clustered in Haven and the other major settlements of the Pacifica Archipelago, though there were a few scientists in isolated research stations, and a handful of GEO Human Resources personnel working in outlying native villages. With the discovery of Long John and the newfound commercial potential of Poseidon, it has become increasingly feasible for private citizens and small organizations to emigrate from Earth. In the aftermath of the Blight, there are millions of human beings on Earth desperate for a chance to start a new life on a new world. In many areas, poverty, disease, malnutrition, economic opportunities, and living conditions are only marginally better than they were during the darkest years of the 22nd Century. Whether fleeing Ebola epidemics in central Africa or epidemic unemployment in the world's cities, humanity looks to Poseidon for hope. The dream is realized, of course, by only a few. After more than a decade of explosive growth, the Poseidon colony still represents fewer than .04% of the human population. The Office of Colonial Affairs estimates that it approved only 1 in every 1,000 applications for immigration to Poseidon between 2186 and 2196. Most of the first independent newcomer settlements were organized and subsidized by the GEO. Through the coordinated activities of several Commissions, colonization plans were drawn up and applicants were selected from the millions being sent to dedicated CommCore datasites. The Office of Colonial Affairs was responsible for organizing all aspects of these settlement efforts, from the equipment they would need to the range of skills the colonists would require. An OCA administrator was often assigned to oversee the activities of a new settlement for several months, and the colonists were bound by contract to follow GEO directives. While the GEO is rarely directly involved in the organization and sponsorship of new colonization efforts in 2199, new settlements are still regulated by the OCA. Independent groups are free to develop their own settlement plans, but these plans must meet the OCA Colonial Settlement Guidelines, available on CommCore. These guidelines cover a broad range of issues, including settlement size and location, minimum financial resources, construction standards, environmental impact assessments, and disaster response plans. The OCA guidelines are fairly restrictive, but there are several factors which limit the GEO's ability to enforce them. Most importantly, the OCA simply lacks the resources to maintain 002.77
B L U E P LAN E T even infrequent supervision of the hundreds of settlements on Poseidon. In most outlying settlements, the discovery of an OCA violation is often an accident or the result of a GEO investigation into a disaster. Further, while the GEO can effectively regulate public immigration to Poseidon, there is often little it can do to prevent changes in the plans of a colony or of individual colonists once they are on Poseidon. In recent years, the OCA has focused on the regulation of immigration to Poseidon. Applicants for immigration must not have a criminal record, must be in good health, .and must be able to show a relatively stable work history in a useful field. Applicants with experience in a profession that is in short supply on the planet, such as teachers, medical professionals, and technicians, are much more likely to be approved. Unfortunately, for all the GEO's efforts, a large number of private and Incorporate services will transport anyone who can pay to the new world. False records, bogus Incorporate citizenships and outright smuggling bring thousands of undocumented immigrants to Poseidon every year. Unsuccessful applicants, criminals fleeing the authorities, and ecoterrorists all find these alternatives expensive but effective. Many of those who opt for immigration to Poseidon do so because they think the planet offers the promise of an easier life. In fact, however, the average colonist on the waterworld will face greater hardships than all but the most disadvantaged and miserable of Earth. The adversity begins with the chemical baths and viral therapies of preflight and continues thoughout the colonist's life. Along the way, the colonist must contend with ferocious storms, lethal parasites, dangerous predators, and frontier violence. The life of a colonist is also one of few luxuries. While the millions on Earth take for granted their daily dependence on reliable technology, the colonists of Poseidon depend on scarce, overworked, and unreliable equipment for their very survival. Farm machinery, fishing boats, communications equipment, medical supplies, survival gear, and hunting rifles are often all that stand between the colonists and a savage planet. The colonists of Poseidoq, those who survive, are almost uniformly stalwart, resourceful, independent, and lucky. Most of all, a colonist must be willing to work. On Poseidon, there are kelp-farmers, fishermen, prospectors, technicians, teachers, builders, and countless others, and hard work is a feature of all their lives. Newcomers who come to Poseidon seeking the carefree lifestyle of holovid natives wind up dead, or huddled in the slums of Haven and Second Try. Because colonists rely on the hard work of others, as well as their own, few newcomer settlements will tolerate slackers. A census sponsored by Human Resources placed the number of newcomer settlements in 2199 at approximately 300. They range in size from a single family running an isolated trading post to large towns with populations of 50,000 or more. The Poseidon colonists are diverse, with different motivations, dreams, customs, and lifestyles. Regardless oftheir reasons for coming, they all share one thing in common: they now call Poseidon home. 002.78 PIONEERS The pioneers of Poseidon are tough, hardworking people who came to the colony world in search of freedom, prosperity, and a simpler life. Pioneers immigrate to Poseidon to escape Earth's crowded cities, government administration, and the corporate rat-race. These are the colonists who build new settlements with their bare hands, colonists who spend their days in kelp-fields and on fishing trawlers working to provide for themselves and their families. There are pioneer settlements built on GEO and Incor~rate grants, family wealth, religious devotion, and the will of charismatic leaders. All are built on the blood, sweat, and dreams of men and women searching for a new life on a new world. While the realities of colonial life are very different from the myths perpetuated in Earth's entertainment industry, the truth is, every pioneer is something of a romantic. There is something epic, something noble, in humanity's struggle to carve a civilization from an alien wilderness, and only the most dour and reserved pioneers are immune to its lure. Most pioneers come to Poseidon to build a new life for themselves, but find that they are also building a new future for humanity. The daily life of a pioneer is an ironic interplay of the routine and the unexpected. Each morning, pioneers rise early and share breakfast with their families. For the next couple of hours, the children will often help their parents with the morning chores before going to their settlement's small schoolhouse or returning to their homes to access CommCore. The parents will go to the docks, the kelp-fields, the algae pens, the workshop, the general store, the clinic, or the town hall to begin the day's work. Most of the day will transpire like all the others before it, but inevitably, there will be some crisis to disrupt the routine. A young man working on a construction team will be injured, a marine predator will threaten the fishing crews, a storm front will move in, a property dispute will arise between neighbors, or a stranger will come to town. Pioneers depend on each other for survival, and the pioneer communities of Poseidon are tightly knit. If a pioneer needs help on his trawler, bringing in a kelp harvest, or building a house, most of the community will be ready and willing to lend a hand. Like small towns everywhere, just about everybody in a pioneer settlement knows everybody else, and few secrets are kept for very long. Because many settlements are also vulnerable to the human predators who roam the frontier, the close ties among the members of a newcomer community often translate to a general distrust of strangers. While pioneers will often appear polite and even friendly when dealing with outsiders, this appearance often masks fear and suspicion. The GEO and Incorporate remain the major players -in the colonial arena, and the natives receive the majority of the media attention on Earth, but pioneers are the backbone of the Poseidon colony. They are building islands of civilization in a sea of wilderness, and they will be forging their own destinies on the colony world long after the last kilogram of Long John has been scraped from the planet's crust. The pioneers are a quiet faction in the politics of the waterworld, but they are also independent, dedicated, and passionate. Scattered across
o NTH E FRO N TIE R the planet in isolated settlements, they are united by a common dream, and eventually, their voices will be heard. PROSPECTORS Poseidon offers the irresistible promise of untold wealth, and the Incorporate have not been the only ones to catch "Long John fever." The discovery of Long John sparked a colonial rush, and independent prospectors and miners flood to the colony with hopes of striking it rich. Many of these fortuneseekers have few financial resources and most have even less experience in deep-sea mining. Thousands ofindependent prospectors have fallen victim to old and poorly maintained equipment, marine predato~s, hostile natives, and their own poor judgment. Many more have been forced to abandon their dreams and pursue other, safer careers on the frontier. Nevertheless, there are those who continue to chase the big prize, from solitary prospectors in obsolete submersibles to independent collectives of hard suited miners scouring the ocean floor for deposits the Incorporate have missed. Ironically, the very idiosyncrasies of xenosilicates that make it difficult to mine also make it possible for independents to compete with the industrial giants. An independent prospector with a decent magnetometer and reliable hard suit has almost as good a chance of finding a deposit as an Incorporate survey team. Moreover, the prospector doesn't have to harvest much of the ore to ensure his financial future. A prospector can expect to command about 300-400cs for a single gram of unrefined Long John on the colonial market. As a result, the lucky prospectors retire to a life of luxury after discovering their first strike. When not piloting their submersibles along the sea floor or wrestling with a sediment dredge, independent prospectors spend their free time in the dozens of small mining towns dotting the frontier. These towns are usually little more than a collection of run-down saloons, brothels, pharium dens, hotels, and repair shops huddled along a rocky beach or floating in the tiny cove of some unnamed island. Most prospectors are stereotypically irritable and quick-tempered, and barroom brawls and even shootings are a staple of daily life in Poseidon's mining towns. The life of an independent prospector on Poseidon is a hard and often lonely one, and only the most skilled and fortunate will ever enjoy fame and fortune. It is a life that many find unenviable. For most prospectors, though, the solitude, challenge, and risk are stronger motivations than the promise of riches. When the bills are overdue and wealth seems an elusive dream, pride and"determination drive the prospector onward in the relentless pursuit of the prize. OPPORTUNISTS Prospectors and miners are not the only ones who have been swept up in the Long John rush. The Poseidon colony's booming economy and underdeveloped private markets have attracted thousands of independent entrepreneurs looking to corner a piece of the waterworld's prosperity for themselves. Most ofthese opportunists flock to the colony's cities and major settlements. Arriving on Poseidon with only a little credit and a lot of hopes, they open general stores, repair shops, fish markets, wilderness outfitters, fuel stations, charter services, and countless other enterprises. While there truly is a world of opportunity on Poseidon, the colonial economy has its share problems. Retailers have difficulty keeping manufactured goods in stock, simply because there are still so few manufacturing operations on the planet. Several Incorporate states and a few private corporations are beginning to rectify this, but most manufactured goods are still in short supply. As a result, most of the manufactured goods that flow through the colonial economy are pre-owned. There is a steady trade in second-hand clothing, vehicles, spare parts, electronics, and just about every other durable good. Fortunately, scarcity ensures that the entrepreneur's profit margins on this merchandise remain fairly high. The incredibly high interests rates commanded by the banks and other financial institutions of Poseidon's major settlements are another problem facing opportunists. When compounded by the premium on real estate in Haven, Second Try, and Kingston, mortgage rates on commercial space have become prohibitive. The GEO has been careful not to interfere in the local economy, and market forces are pressuring entrepreneurs to leave the cities and open their businesses in the outlying settlements where the private economy is least developed. In these outlying towns, trading posts and traveling traders are being joined by more specialized businesses. Of course, there is a darker side to opportunism. Some of the colonists with dreams of prosperity are either unwilling to risk their capital on legitimate business ventures, or do not have the capital to risk. Others balk at the life of hard work and patience that the entrepreneur must embrace. These colonists hope to get their piece of the action by operating on the margins of the law, or by leaving it behind entirely. Con artists, black marketeers, and even organized crime have become major forces in the economies of the large colonial settlements. Quite often, the challenges facing legitimate businesses are magnified by the activities of these underworld entrepreneurs. In the cities, most small businesses are vulnerable to protection rackets, and the GEO Patrol has had little success in breaking up these schemes. Similarly, the scarcity of manufactured goods has forced many retailers to look to the black market for products ranging from vehicle parts to unregulated pharmaceuticals. Construction and transportation businesses, two of the most prosperous industries on Poseidon, are favorite targets of organized crime, and are subject to arson and hijackings if they don't cooperate. From independent shopkeepers and mob enforcers to native sell-outs peddling genuine aborigine artifacts on the waterfront, Poseidon is where the action is. Sparked by boom-town commerce, the private sectors and criminal underworlds of the colonial settlements are growing at a frantic pace. The strongest, wisest and luckiest of Poseidon's opportunists are swept up in this tide of prosperity. Many more are left penniless, their dreams shattered, huddling in the slums of Brighton or running small-time hustles in the mining towns. 002.79
B L U E P LAN E T 002.80
o NTH E FRO N TIE R Over the past two decades scientific thought and progress have both undergone drastic change as a direct result of the discovery of xenosiLicates on the planet Poseidon. Entirely new scientific disciplines have developed, and entirely new controversies have arisen over everything from genetics and biochemistry to the orig'in of life and divine creation. No single discovery in recent times has so impacted every field of science or had such far reaching social ramifications as the realization of the potential in these minerals. The purpose of this report is to describe the basic properties, exploitation, economics and scientific applications of this unique substance. The commercial value of xenosilicates is the reason the Poseidon frontier was opened, and the reason the Incorporate can afford the horrendous expense of exploiting a planet in another star system. XenosiLicate mining drives the economy of Poseidon and stands as a determining factor in Earth's recovering economy. To date, the minerals have been found exclusively in the exposed Lithosphere of the planet Poseidon. XenosiLicates are an enigma and represent an entirely new class of minerals. The purest ore is translucent, and in dim light it almost glows. Such pure nodules are rare and uniformly smaLL. More commonly, the ore is found in larger nodular deposits intermixed with other mineral compounds and organics, giving the ore a milkier and grainier appearance. The specific gravity of purified xenosiLicate is 6.8 with a hardness comparable to diamond. Its specific heat appears variable by grade with some types of ore being almost impossible to melt. XenosiLicates are found in large but isolated deposits, as nuggets or nodules of various sizes. Individual nodules usuaLLy mass less than .5 kg but there are unsubstantiated records of nodules in excess of 50 kg. Most nodules are spherical in shape with multiple radiating spurs or spines that can be over a meter in length. In some cases these spurs interconnect nodules implying that they somehow serve as catalysts for the deposition of new nodules. Global Ecology Organization SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY Geological Report # POS-474 General Information on XenosiLicates [temporal origin] 08.04.94 [last update] 09.21.98 [status] <0/0&81bq> Prospecting for xenosiLicates is more art than science and most attempts to facilitate the process with technology have met with little success. Like historical prospecting, experience, hard work and luck are the only practical tools. Predicting the location of xenosiLicate deposits is not only complicated by the apparent lack of any deposition pattern, but also by the fact that over 94% of all deposit discoveries have been made on the ocean floor, below a depth of 1000 m. It was discovered early on that xenosiLicates have a characteristic effect on electromagnetic fields, warping them in an identifiable way. Unfortunately, even with sensitive instruments, this effect is undetectable beyond only a few hundred meters. Prospecting for xenosiLicates is therefore a problematic task, requiring slow and careful proximity scans of the ocean floor. Further complicating the effort is the apparent lack of geological consistency between the locations in which deposits are discovered. There seem to be few consistent geological cues indicating the presence of a deposit, one site being as promising as any other. 002.81
8 L U E P LAN E T Mining xenosiLicates is a hazardous, technically demanding process. CommerciaL expLoitation of the minerals has forced advancement of underwater engineering and the birth of entireLy new technoLogies. Because of the compLications of depth, pressure and vioLent surface storms, most mining efforts involve submerged factories, Labs, habitats, and refineries. Trains of tug subs and armies of hard suited miners· work under thousands of meters of water in absoLute coLd and darkness, under unforgiving, LethaL pressure. The smallest deposits are usuaLLy excavated using Large cargo subs specially outfitted for extended use as support faciLities. Some deposits are worked using portabLe, submersibLe stations, temporariLy Lowered and supported from the surface. The Largest deposits, or those Located within the hurricane beLts' where extended surface support is impossibLe, require more permanent facilities. Permanent stations are usuaLLy estabLished to serve two or more mining sites as they are expensive to buiLd and maintain. These faciLities are Large, with dozens or hundreds of crew members, muLtipLe sub bays, and even refining operations. In addition to mining the ore, many faciLities are also used to mine other ocean floor minerals to further offset expenses and justify operation. Even with the sophisticated technoLogies that provide access to the sea floor, the actuaL process of mining is reLativeLy primitive and Labor intensive. At most mines, deep sediment Layers must be dredged away to expose the crust. Once the bedrock has been exposed the deposit must be removed from veins in the crust itseLf. ExpLosives, high pressure water cannons and heavy earth moving equipment must then be wrestLed into position and operated by hard suited miners. After the ore noduLes are freed from the bedrock they must be hauLed to a refinery, usually on the surface. Here the mineraL is sorted by grade, cLeaned and processed into wafer. Wafer is the purified, semi-raw form of xenosiLicate in which the ore is stored and shipped. Each wafer is a ten gram, fibrous and brittLe rectangLe with a transLucent milky hue. Each stick is etched into ten, one centimeter square sections which in turn serve as the basic currency standard in the modern economy. On Poseidon a gram square of standard purity is worth about one thousand scrip; on Earth its vaLue is five times that. Though paper and pLastic money dominate as currency on Poseidon, these units of exchange are supported by the market vaLue of xenosiLicates, and it is not uncommon to see actuaL wafer trading hands, much Like goLd nuggets once did on Earth. XenosiLicates' inherent vaLue was discovered accidentally by an Incorporate mineraL survey in the earLy days of coLonization. A technician at an AtLas subsidiary cLeaning mineraL sampLes in an enzyme bath noted the extreme reactivity ofaxenosiLicate noduLe. The enzymes in the bath were denatured and then restructured by contact with the noduLe. SimpLe curiosity Lead to more sophisticated chemicaL tests, and eventually to the discovery of the mineraLs' exceptionaLLy bioreactive nature and biochemicaL potential. 002.82 Certain grades of ore, when carefully processed in a pharmaceuticaL Laboratory, become powerfuL synthetic cataLysts for celluLar metaboLism. In simpLe terms celluLar metaboLism is controlled by enzymes manufactured within the ceLL. The manufacture of enzymes is in turn controlled by the DNA of the ceLL. It was discovered that xenosiLicates can act as biochemicaL tempLates for the manipuLation of organic moLecuLes. Certain cLeavage faces can serve as chemicaL frameworks and substrates that act to repair, restructure or stabilize DNA and therefore the genetic code. Such acute biochemicaL controL allows genetic engineers to LiteraLLy rewrite a ceLL's genetic bLue print, redesigning the very structure, function and metaboLism of Living organisms. The appLications of xenosiLicates have forever changed not onLy the fieLds of medicine and genetic engineering, but the face of humanity as weLL. In vitro aLteration, viraL transformation, and genetic surgery have each added form as weLL as function to the human body. Genetic disorders can be corrected, cancers eLiminated and diseases cured. Strength can be enhanced, speed increased, and body parts repLaced or modified. Anything is possibLe, anything at aLL, if the price can be paid. And if the price is high enough, even death can be bought off. The common names for xenosiLicates, Longevity ore, or Long John, originated because of the ore's most remarkabLe and unexpected effect. Genetic engineers had Long known that aging in animals was caused by a sLow deterioration of their genetic code, ending in the failure of certain aspects of celluLar metaboLism. In earLy experiments it was found that patients undergoing Long John therapy suffered no such metaboLic decay. Certain configurations of the mineraL apparentLy serve to stabiLize celluLar metaboLism, in effect arresting the aging process. It eventuaLLy became apparent that Long John was indeed a miracLe drug. Adrug that stopped aging and heLd the promise of human immortaLity. The discovery of the biochemicaL appLications of Long John was one of those watershed events in history that forever aLters humanity's coLLective perspective. No Longer constrained by death or physicaL Limitations, the future hoLds new potentiaL. However, few can afford this potentiaL. While individuaL Long John treatments to combat disease or modify genetic code are within the means of some, onLy the very rich can afford the continuous therapy required for Longevity. Long John is expensive; xenosiLicates are rare and difficuLt to mine, they must be shipped to Earth, and the Incorporate controL.their distribution. To keep the genetic code stabLe and the aging process arrested, a patient must undergo severaL Longevity treatments each year. On Earth each treatment can cost as much as fifty thousand scrip. On Earth, a worLd of economic desperation and dwindLing resources, few can afford continuaL youth. Longevity therapy is substantially cheaper on Poseidon, as Long John is decidedLy more accessibLe. The skill and equipment to process the raw ore into its pharmaceuticaL form is rare on Poseidon, however, and so the therapy is stilL not cheap, costing about five thousand scrip p·er treatment. Longevity treatments do not make one younger, they simpLy prevent further aging. If the treatments are stopped the effects
o NTH E FRO N TIE R 002.83
B L U E P LAN E T slowly fade and aging begins again within a few months. Poseidon has only been reopened for exploitation for about thirty years, and the unique properties of Long John were first realized only within the last 15 years. Longevity therapy was many years in development and so has been broadly available itself for only the past decade. Therefore the social effects of an ageless upper-class have yet to be felt, though most analysts fear a new era of social strife as the rich and powerful remain healthy, living on and on, while the poor continue to age as always befor~. Economically and technologicqUy, xenosilicates have had profound effects by changing the very basis of biotechnology and unleashing the power of DNA. Philosophically, the discovery of Long John has had more subtle, but no less significant, effects. Controversy is rampant about the origins of xenosilicates, and vary from conventional scientific theory to the patently absurd. There are those that claim Long John is a naturally occurring substance, forming in the lithosphere by some natural geological process. There are still others that think Long John's compatibility with terrestrial biochemistry is far too unlikely to be coincidence. These people have claimed everything from hyper-advanced alien intelligence to the hand of God as origins for the minerals. Current evidence regarding the origin of Long John is circumstantial at best, and all relevant theories are therefore suspect in the absence of a scientific consensus. Nonetheless, the question remains one of the most hotly pursued in modern research. The race to artificially syntesize xenosilicates continues, for the ability to manufacture Long John would obviously be a major economic coup. It would also herald a new era of social change as the benefits of longevity therapy became available to the masses. The major obstacle to these efforts is that the biochemical applications of xenosilicates require a perfect lattice, completely free of flaws. While xenosilicate lattices have been synthesized in the lab, there are always numerous errors in these structures, and they are therefore of little use as templates for precise molecular manipulation. Chemists believe that perfect xenosilicate lattices can only be created at enormous temperatures and pressures and, unfortunately, only over long periods of time_Attempts to accelerate the process have yet to meet with any success. 002.84
o NTH E FRO N TIE R The Pacifica Archipelago is the largest collection of islands on Poseidon, and contains over forty-three percent of the planet's exposed land masses. Pacifica consists of more than two hundred major islands, and thousands of lesser clusters, islets and atolls. The vast majority of these islands were formed as a direct result of volcanism, and many still support active volcanoes. Other islands are made of limestone, some are of uplifted basalt, and a few even have granite cores. Pacifica straddles Poseidon's equator, but most of its larger islands are in the planet's southern hemisphere. The prevailing climate is warm and wet, with tropical and subtropical ecosystems throughout. Heavy rainfall and bright sun support densely vegetated forests almost everywhere, but local conditions often conspire to create other biomes. The mountains of Prime Meridian are cold and snowcapped in the winter, while the central savannas are warm and fertile year round. On Westcape and New Jamaica, prevailing winds and steep mountains form rain shadows, turning the islands' western shores into coastal deserts. Some islands are covered in dry chapparel while others have only a few palm-like trees and broad sandy beaches.Topography varies widely as well. The older and smaller islands are relatively flat, while the younger ones are high peaked with sheer sea cliffs. It is a little known fact that the southern end of the Highlands has the highest sea cliffs in either of the solar systems. The oceans surrounding the islands are uniformly deep, but the waters of the archipelago are relatively warm and shallow. In some regions the prevailing winds bring cold, nutrient rich water to the surface, supporting rich and productive ecologies. In others, calm clear water is a perfect habitat for diverse and almost endless coral reef systems. The Pacifica Archipelago was the logical choice for the establishment of Haven, the Athena Project's first settlement, and the vast majority of subsequent settlements have been built within its reaches. Though deep in the Storm Belt, the cluster's countless islands and protected coves serve to shelter settlements from the worst of the weather. The surrounding seas are rich fishing grounds, and many of the islands have proven to be productive farmland. The typically dense forests yield good timber for construction and boat building, and have provided many other useful products such as seed stock, pharmaceuticals' and natural cloth fibers. As the human presence on Poseidon continues to grow, so do the demands on the archipelago's diverse, but ultimately limited, natural resources. The Incorporate continue to mine Long John with little regard to the local ecology. Concerned activists are already demanding more regulations and enforcement. Native fishermen have begun to notice declines in their harvests as the GEO scientists scramble to gain insight into the region's ecological future. 002.85
B L U E P LAN E T , "0 NORTH""· PASSAGE 0.00 PRIME MERIDIAN (2489) .. (653) I ~'DI .' I I NEPTUN,,'S&8: CLUSTER , ~. r;J:' , ~·CJ ' Q ,.~;.Jj) SEA OF COUSTEAU (1259) 0 KAUAI ;~~D[j .". ~W~ O@ @;? (71) ,(219) : NEW (1035) DO·C;IFFSIDE ':~:' • : HAWAII 1987) .,_. [7~, ~':,.:. ': .' ~p~nIBONE 1 SIMUSHIR/.)) SANDY - • .,.. MAUl ~0 ; ________":':~_~";'~~ _~__ :~'~C~~~ __ _JJ V":~: __ ,-·~N~:-~~ _ '., • C? 0 0 ,O"'~::b 'EPOCH OJ. I .D Doo : ?~; 0 () dJ I (773) 1 '0' LJO Op : ~~~~C~& 52 CR~SOE I ~~l SANTA ELENA () Q I ISLA CZ,v I VERDE C) NOMAD , ". ,. I THE WA~:~~,:•• (876) I ... : ~CAERNAfON 1'~(35) : C;LYPSO )@) NORTH THE COVE. ~&ll CHANNEL HIGHLANDS 1ffJ) q, ISLANDS 0 ' I (;) ~. C7((j1 (20) .o, : VOlLHA;DT. .~ 0 EAST \). 0 O~ b ~L1BERTY : (2565) : S~UTH ,'. .SE~:~~S'I DNE~PORT HAVEN 150 S--------- _: ------------------------:---{fS~A~A~ __ !13~'~ __: _ J;f ~1).~. _~~U_S~~R _ NEW. I '1) ~~<?UTHWARD JAMAI~C~KINGSTON~IPROMLAISNEDD • I; ,. (114) ~I DOLPHIN SEA .\ • Q @M :~F~EDOM :~E . ZION za MARLEY I? II D 0 SALVADORI~0'~. ISLANDS I IRIE BAY (532) I tr IALDERB~G(QJ , I BABYLON (827) I • '@) , 0 I .,.D I,. 0 ~f .: GJ CURL~Y' ~" ..~~ (120): F~STERIS og eJ~ r=-'J f:S) rtf}) . PEBBLE C9JiJ I BAY.' :'~NEWfREMANTlE 1.9----' • ~T'''t::.J . MOE 0 ROCKS'l. • U0 Al.fo.AAMLAKA GOODAll QJ 0 D POSEIDON ANTILLES I LARRY 6·D.0· I 00 • PATCHWO~K REEF I' : • ADIOS C~l~N'~~ ~.' : fil] '@'-- @J • '0' 0 0 I ,\) • NIIHAU !Jf§J fli\ I (1065) " ' 0 (3289) I NOCHES' .~:9 VIEGO 0J I o • • o\Ai~~ : hQr ~.~ . 29 1 S ----------i -rr Q ~fil - - - - i.- - - -SOUTHERN TROPIC - - - - - - - - - - ~:... - - - 1- - - - - - - - - • • 1 0 0 I ISLAS· I e KANSAS PARADISE "0 1SERENDIPITY : BONITAS I D " :",9 1 ATOLLS I I a 0 I : ;. : I •••••·Ii'I C=====:J EL MAR DEL:SUR (4502) 72@@@ [K{O [1@l!0Jrnurn ~~ (DEPTH IN METERS) I 800 METER CONTOURS I I (9342) NEW PACIFIC 1 1 I 1 I I I I ---i------- I I I : 1(349) WESTCir~PE. I 0 '~'~.~~ ,~ .- ·1 , WESTCAPE ;d:1 . </, J> (f),B CHANNEL (51) CJsounWOINT CJCbo~ eDYfEDD .:~, D CAN~~0~~~~ :.olJ1 I I I I I I I I I I I - - _I _ 1 1 1 1 I I I 1 I I I 1 1 I I I (10325) : I ~~rfsEN0.' P. I -- - -- -- - - - - - 150 N--------- ------------------ ~.~ Jl_ - _: - '- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -'- - - - : NOWHERE ~: : I ' DIMWASH I ~. SEAMOUNTS I 1 I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I - - _I - - - - - - - - - 0.00 - - - - EQUATOR 002.86
o NTH E FRO N TIE R I love this city. The history of the human colonization of Poseidon is written here, on the streets, the aging landmarks ofOld Town, and the faces ofits people. When I first came to Poseidon, I walked up to the Planetfall Monument on Watertop and I could almost see how it must have looked to those first colonists who landed here over a hundred years ago. The historical buildings ofOld Town whisper the secrets ofthose earliest days, when the Athena Project colonists built a home for themselves, and hu.manity, on an alien world. The spirit of history still echoes in this place, and the ghosts of the first humans on Poseidon still drift with the morning tides in its harbor. Listen carefully, and you can hear the' cries ofJessica DeMarco, the first colonist native-born to this world. Haven is a city haunted by a past too wonderful to fade into the history books and museums. There is another Haven, though, one that rails against the weight ofnostalgia pressing down on it and struggles to overcome its charm with efficiency and progress. This is the Haven that sprawls around Old Town like a pack of wolves encircling its.prey. It is a city ofIncorporate spires and fiscal policies, a place where government bureaucracy, commercialism, and opportunism strangle the ghosts-ofits own legacy. Haven is a city with two faces: on one, a grimace offierce determination, on the other, a sad smile. - Tomas McLain, The New Yorker LOCATION AND LOCAL TERRAIN Haven is located in the Pacifica Archipelago, at 0°0'0" longitude, 14°11'48" south latitude. The city was built along the southern coast of Argos Island, a land mass in the Haven Cluster. Most of Haven sprawls over a small coastal island nestled in natural, deep-water harbor. Because of the steep terrain of the island, much of the city is terraced in the fashion of old Mediterranean cities on Earth. HISTORY The site of present-day Haven was targeted for Poseidon's first human settlement while the UNSS Cousteau was still in orbit. The extensive survey conducted prior to planetfall recommended the location for its natural harbor, relatively stable weather patterns, and limited tectonic activity. In 2089, the ~iginal colonists made planetfall on the surface of the ocean about two kilometers south of the current spaceport facilities on Shuttle Point. The colony ship had been designed with modular components that could be dismantled and reassembled on the planet's surface. The Colonial Headquarters, erected two days after planetfall, had served as one of the Cousteau's habitation pods during the ship's long voyage from Earth. C9nstruction of the original settlement followed a colonizapon plan drawn up by a UN team on Earth and was com- (pleted in 2090. At this time, the settlement consisted almost ~ntirely of "modular habitats" stripped from the Cousteau. In 2098, the colony, which had spread from Haven to several more settlements throughout the archipelago, received a stunning blow to morale when the expected resupply ship from Earth failed to arrive. Administrative records report 15 suicides in that year, as well as several more deaths attributed to "mysterious circumstances" and a dramatic increase in the incidence of violent crime. A week-long summit meeting in Haven, attended by the leadership of each of Poseidon's settlements, resulted in a new plan to increase industrial development, infrastructure, and agricultural production in order to achieve long-term self-sufficiency. The next fifty years saw a vast improvement in each of these areas, with the exception ofindustrial development. The colony lacked the human resources, raw materials, and infrastructure to bootstrap a self-sufficient heavy industrial base. While the colony was able to build the tools and support infrastructure necessary to sustain much of its existing technology, it was unable to develop the factories, refineries, power-plants, mines, and other resource-exploitation infrastructure necessary to sustain long-term industry. The greatest setback to Haven's industrialization effort came in 2146 when a helium flash vaporized the massive fusion reactor stripped from the Cousteau. The scars from the ensuing fire are still visible in Oceanside, even after decades of renovation and new construction. Well over 100 colonists lost their lives fighting the fire, and their names are enscribed on the faces of the Planetfall Monument, along with all of the other original colonists who lived and died in Haven. The reactor disaster forced the colonists to turn to alternative power sources, and Haven is now a leader in the development of solar, wind, and wave-power technology. Nevertheless, the reactor fire was significant enough, at the time, to crush once and for all any hopes that Haven might be able to sustain a selfsufficient industrial base. The years between the reactor fire and Recontact were difficult for the citizens of Haven, as they were for all of the colonists on Poseidon. Kelp fields continued to be developed in and around the harbor, and much of the human and physical resources of the town were devoted to the agricultural production necessary to sustain the town's growing population. Between 2146 and 2165, well over 90% of Haven's population was involved in the kelp and fishing industries or in support services for these industries. As the aggregate populationof the Poseidon colony continued to grow, the population of Haven actually declined, as the need for agricultural self-sufficiency created a strong disincentive to continued urbanization, and more and more families moved to outlying areas and isolated settlements. By the time the Adm. Robert Perry arrived in orbit around Poseidon, the population had leveled off at just over 15,000 permanent residents. Though their economic standard of living and technology base would have reminded many newcomers of a 20th Century Third World nation, the citizens of Haven were healthy, content, and possessed of a fierce pride in their cultural and historic heritage. As a result, and because Haven was the focus of the GEO's initial contacts, there was a great deal of political and social unrest surrounding Recontact. Haven's population would actually decline further before it began its tremendous boom in response to renewed GEO 002.87
P LAN E T
o NTH E FRO N TIE R and Incorporate colonization efforts, as thousands of natives fled the town in hopes of salvaging their culture and lifestyle. PHYSICAL LAYOUT Haven's evolution from a small, colonial settlement to a major city has progressed in distinct, historical stages. In the earliest years of the Athena Project, construction was centralized almost entirely in Old Town and the Heights. There were a few, scattered buildings in what is now the Warehouse District and CBD, and the colony's fusion reactor and limited industrial facilities were located in what would become Oceanside. Otherwise, there were kelp fields growing in the cove now dominated by the Wharf, and a moderate collection of fishing vessels docked where the Floats now sprawl. The rest of the island was predominately wilderness, with the exception of the Planetfall Monument on Watertop, which was reached by a long, winding path up the slope from Old Town. With Recontact, the city began to spread outward along the beach from Old Town. GEO administrators and scientists built homes in the Heights, and the modular, outlying storage buildings west of Old Town were supplemented with modern warehouses and supply depots. The first Colonial Affairs offices were constructed in the Central Business District, and the majority of the hybrid colonists arriving in 2176 were settled in the newly completed Brighton housing development. A new fusion plant was constructed on Shuttle Point, along with modern maintenance facilities for tugs and shuttles. Following the discovery of Long John, Haven's exploding population continued to puyh construction up the sharp slopes inland from the liarbof. Today, these slopes are covered with terraced rows of commercial buildings and tasteful, private dwellings. A two-way maglev line runs from the spaceport up the East Shore, across the Haven Channel north of the Waterfront, west along the shoreline to the Heights, then winds its way along the terraces up to the Government Center. THE DISTRICTS OF HAVEN Old Town Haven's Old Town, built on the island's natural harbor, is evolved from an original design drawn up by colonization planners back on Earth. As a result, Old Town's physical layout is almost jarringly efficient and utilitarian. The oldest, original buildings are almost exclusively the pre-fabricated, modular structures stripped from the Cousteau. Most of these buildings, however, have been extensively modified and expanded with improvements and additions of bioplastic, wood, and stone construction in a variety of architectural styles. The streets of Old Town were originally designed along an efficient grid pattern, but additions and new construction have transformed this orderly design into a maze of narrow, twisting streets and covered alleyways. The streets themselves are constructed of biocrete, a genetically engineered, organic surfacing material that is smooth and spongy to the touch, but stronger and more durable than asphalt or concrete. Biocrete, which can be inexpensively grown in simple vats of organic nutrients, is highly moisture-absorbent and capable of flexing and contracting in response to changing temperature. Seed samples of the material were brought with the original expedition and grown locally in Haven and other major settlements during the first years of the colonization effort. Old Town includes both commercial and residential real estate, and zoning is almost completely absent. In the northern and central blocks, one can find small privately owned shops interspersed with some of the first homes built on Poseidon. These neighborhoods are what one usually thinks of as Old Town, and they are still the heart and soul of the city. The Colonial Headquarters sits in Athena Plaza, and is still the home of the city's Mayor. As one moves east toward the Wharf, Old Town becomes more modern and commercial. The neighborhoods nearest the Warehouse District have become increasingly rough in recent years, resulting in an increased Patrol presence. Th. Floa" Since the earliest days of the colony, people have been taking up residence on boats moored in West Harbor. Before Recontact, this region was mainly occupied by the fishermen who found it efficient to stay close to their work. In the last 20 years, however, the district has exploded into a fullblown boat town, as Haven's poor have built and lashed together sailboats, houseboats, crude rafts, and barges to serve as inexpensive dwellings. Unfortunately, there is little to distinguish public walkways from private residences on the Floats, and it is easy for a newcomer to find himself in an altercation when he inadvertently wanders into someone's home. The Floats still have a large native population, and poverty and petty crime continue to be major concerns. Brighton This district in dominated by a sprawling, GEOfunded housing project, and is one of the poorest neighborhoods in Haven, outside of the Floats. The Brighton projects are home to such unfortunate souls as impoverished natives, a large hybrid population, and countless newcomers who have failed to find their dreams on the new world. Crime and violence are rampant in the projects, and the Patrol seems to have written them off entirely. The Heights Besides Old Town, this is the oldest residential district in Haven, and is still among the most sought-after real estate in the city. Since Recontact, the Heights has become an exclusive, upper-class neighborhood that is home to highlevel government officials, Incorporate executives, and the independent rich. In addition to a sizable Patrol presence, the district also has a private security contract with MacLeod Enforcement. The residents of the Heights consider these added measures necessary due to the close proximity of Brighton, the Warehouse District, and the Floats. Warehouse District The western districts of Haven are among the oldest, and consequently, less reputable of the city. The warehouse district is a study in contrasts. It has its share of dilapidated, modular structures from the earliest days of the colony, but it is also home to the newer, well-constructed, and secured Incorporate warehouses that have accompanied Haven's increasing role as a global distribution center. The westernmost sections of the Warehouse District, as one approaches the Floats, are an infamous high-crime area, and everything from organized crime operations to ecoterrorist cells 002.89
B L U E P LAN E T can be found hiding in these old, abandoned buildings and darkened alleys. Th. Wharf Regardless of its name, it has been decades since this district was actually used to dock ships, other than the luxury yachts moored at its exclusive marinas. Today, the Wharf is a high-rent neighborhood built out over the harbor, and its open-air markets, bazaars, restaurants, and small shops are a popular stop for tourists from around Poseidon. In addition to fresh seafood and kelp, one can find native handcrafted jewelry, clothing, furniture, knickknacks, and artwork on the Wharf. Central Business District This district was originally home to the colony's administrative office~research labs, medical clinics, machine shops, and other Vi al facilities. In 2199, it has been almost entirely renovated, an 's now dominated by the towering offices of the Incorporate. Many residents consider these glass-and-steel spires an eye sore that has completely destroyed the charm of historic Old Town. The Central Business District has the largest Patrol presence in Haven. The Waterfront This district is a popular entertainment strip, home to restaurants, bars, clubs, virtual arcades, shopping malls, and even a brothel or two. The Waterfront has continued to grow with Haven's booming population, and it now spans the width of Haven Channel. While the West Shore is well-protected by the Patrol and caters mostly to the tourist trade, the East Shore has a more rough and seedy reputation. Oc.ansiele This district was something of a limited industrial complex during the early years of the colony, and was home to the city's fusion reactor. It, along with parts of the CBD and Waterfront, was completely destroyed by the reactor fire in 2146. Since Recontact, Oceanside has been rebuilt and renovated and is now a prosperous, middle-class neighborhood. The ' ......ces These upper-class residential neighborhoods have been developed within the last 10 years, and become more exclusive the further "uptown" one travels. Many of the homes and mansions in these districts are built out away from the m.tainside on sturdy supports, and offer wonderful views of the city below. The South and East Terraces are favored by Incorporate executives for their proximity to the Central Business District, while the North Terraces are home to many highlevel GEO officials and administrators. Colonial Park The northwestern slopes of the city are devoted to Colonial Park, 20 square kilometers of wooded lawns, terraces, streams, ponds, and hiking trails. The park is open to the public and is both a popular getaway spot for locals and major sightseeing stop for tourists. Governlnen' Center The GEO has recently finished construction of a new colonial administrative complex on the plateau near Watertop. It is suspected that most of the GEO's bureaucratic and administrative infrastructure will be moved from Prosperity Station to the Government Center within the next couple of years. The complex includes offices of each GEO Commission with an official presence on Poseidon, as well as 002.90 the Governor's Mansion and the colony's only permanent courthouse and judicial administration facilities. The Poseidon Training Academy is located on a small campus on the northeastern edge of the complex. DEMOGRAPHICS Haven's population reflects the dichotomy of its architecture and history. At just over 500,000 permanent residents, Haven represents approximately 25% of Poseidon's total population. Though most of the descendants of its founders have long since fled the city, there are still between 10,000 and 15,000 natives living in Haven. Most of these continue to work in the kelp and fishing industries, though a few can be found in most other sectors of Haven's market economy, as well. The vast majority of Haven's population, however, consists of newcomers-the post-Recontact waves of colonists and settlers that have flooded to Poseidon in Increasingly staggering numbers. Many of these are affiliated with the GEO or Incorporate, but there are also independent prospectors and opportunists, scientists and scholars at the Haven Institute of Science and Technology, small-time business people, laborers, criminals, teachers, preachers, political activists, journalists and entertainers...the list goes on. Haven's ethnic, genetic, and socioeconomic makeup is as diverse as any human population in history. Though some people mourn the city's loss of its traditional culture and identity, others celebrate this multicultural diversity. GOVERNMENT Of all the settlements on Poseidon, Haven is the most tightly controlled by the GEO. The city is slated to become the colonial capital, and the Colonial Administrator has already established offices in the Government Center. In keeping with tradition, Janson Blair, the Mayor of Haven, resides in the old Colonial Headquarters building in Old Town. Though Haven is the GEO's political center on the surface of Poseidon, the Mayor and City Council retain, in principle, as much autonomous control of the municipality as in any other settlement. In practice, however, OCA is far more concerned and involved with local policy than is the case with other settlements. The Incorporate also maintain extensive offices and facilities in and around Haven. Janson Blair's family has a long tradition of service to Biogene, and his appointment to the highest municipal office of Poseidon's largest city is considered controversial and suspicious by many. Blair was the first newcomer with an Incorporate background elected to any public office on Poseidon. The election was contested by local political organizations, but an investigation directed by the City Council found no evidence of electoral tampering. Several members of the City Council, including a popular native activist named Deacon Kingsely, went on record calling the investigation a "complete farce." Blair's Incorporate sympathies aren't a secret to anyone in Haven, and recent zoning and fiscal policies have benefited local Incorporate operations a great deal. In all fairness, Blair wants to keep his city on the cutting-edge of Poseidon's dynamic economy, and he realizes that the real economic power
o NTH E FRO N TIE R rests in the factories and boardrooms of the Incorporate giants. In turn, Incorporate agents, lobbyists, and executives try to use Blair and the municipal government as political and economic leverage against the GEO. The Colonial Administrator points to this frustrating political triangle as one very good reason to establish a true local government on Poseidon. Others disagree, claiming,that, if anything, the current political situation in Haven offers strong evidence that an autonomous colonial government would quickly be undermined by the expanding Incorporate presence. ECONOMIC BASE Haven is the, center of Poseidon's exploding service industry. Though the city still lacks any significant industrial development, its banks and insurance companies, hospitals, transportation, distribution and communications services, schools, entertainment facilities, and the like, support the burgeoning heavy industry that is taking place in the company towns and industrial complexes on and below Poseidon's surface. Haven's expansive deep-water harbor and ready access to the planet's major spaceport make it a hub of commerce, especially the Long John trade. The city has seen explosive, double-digit economic growth over the last eight years, and the principal concern for local policymakers is the looming threat of runaway hyperinflation. Local financial institutions have responded to political pressure and repeatedly raised the interest rates on both personal and commercial loans in an effort to restrict the money supply and ease inflationary pressures. Unfortunately, even with short-term interest rates well in excess of 200/0, there seems to be a steady supply of newly arrived colonists with the credit and optimism to maintain constant pressure on the loan offices of Haven's major banks. The root of the problem is apparent enough: thousands upon thousands of colonists are flocking to Poseidon with little more than credit, personal possessions, and a desire to become wealthy. When they arrive, whether they are entrepreneurs or prospectors, they invest that credit in the mining equipment, real estate, and machinery that they're sure will guarantee their financial future. The more they buy, the higher prices move in response. When they do get their enterprise up and running, they find that they're forced to charge increasingly exhorbitant prices for their services, simply to keep up with their enormous debt-load. It's a vicious cycle that many analysts believe can only end in disaster. INFRASTRUCTURE Haven is becoming an advanced, modern city similar in many respects to the sprawling metropolitan centers of Earth, but for the countless, inconspicuous reminders of its unique colonial past. Though chaotic, its streets and buildings are wellmaintained in all but the poorest areas, such as the Floats and the Brighton project. The city retained first-rate 'disaster response services, including the best fire and flood protection on the planet, even before the GEO brought in its advanced technology and Emergency Response Teams. Since the reactor disaster, the town has sustained a deeply ingrained tradition of volunteerism in these services that has continued through its dramatic cultural and social transformation. Haven's educational and medical infrastructure is just as impressive. The city privately funds several elementary and secondary schools, and there are many private schools in the city's wealthy neighborhoods. Human Resources usually encourages newly arrived teachers to spend a tenure at one of these schools to prepare themselves for the much more difficult conditions found in Poseidon's other settlements. As a result, Haven's schools enjoy a constant influx of fresh, enthusiastic, young instructors. Many of the city's residents receive excellent medical care from the Haven Medical Center, a modern, well-staffed facility with direct sponsorship from the HCHR. There are a number of smaller hospitals and clinics in the city, as well. Haven receives reliable electrical power from two massive fusion reactors, located at a power generation complex on Shuttle Point. Many resjdences and businesses receive additional, inexpensiv~r from private wind and solar facilities. The city obtains its fresh water from an advanced, fusion-powered desalinization plant purchased from the GEO through a municipal bond issue five years ago. MAP KEY I. Colonial Heaclquarlers Located in the heart of Old Town, this is the original, modular structure stripped from the Cousteau that served as the administrative center of the Athena Project. Today, it serves as the residence and offices ofJanson Blair, Haven's Mayor. 2. Church of Whalesong Theogony This is the only official house of worship on Poseidon for the cetaceans' most popular religion. The incredible structure is fashioned entirely of engineered coral and consists of a central, hemispherical structure supported by a cylindrical base set into the ocean floor. Underwater, the building looks like nothing so much as a giant mushroom, with the waterline about one-third of the way up on the hemispherical section. Above the surface, it looks like a domed coral reef. The hemispherical section is one large chamber and has no floor, so it can be accessed directly from below. The sanctuary serves as both a place of worship and a meeting place for the Church's leadership. 3. Haven Coliseuln This state-of-the-art sports complex rests on huge floats and is firmly anchored to the seafloor. The stadium has a seating capacity of 75,000 for most events, and is equipped with a retractable floor that can be irised open for hydroshot matches. Haven Coliseum also houses restaurants, a luxury hotel, and virtual arcades that make it a popular stop even for tourists not fond of athletic games. 4. Haven Shlpyarcls Jutting out over West Harbor is the industrial maze of the Haven Shipyards. The shipyards boast extensive facilities for maintaining ocean-going vessels, including the tugboats responsible for bringing orbital shtittles into the spaceport. The shipyard docks are equipped with robotic cranes and other heavy equipment used in loading and unloading cargo. This cargo is usually transported from the shipyards by transport hovercraft to the Warehouse District or other distribution centers around the city. 002.91
B L U E P LAN E T 5. Nathalli.1 Le..ar M ••orlal Spaceport Named for the famous Argos 12 astronaut, Haven's spaceport includes extensive facilities for the repair and maintenance of orbital shuttles, and the receiving and processing of passengers, baggage, and cargo. The shuttles themselves take off and land on the ocean surface, at a designated area about ten kilometers from shore known locally as the Dropzone. They are then towed by huge tugboats to docks and receiving terminals at the spaceport. The deafening roar of the ships' fusion drives and the immense clouds of vaporized water they generate as they lift-off and touch-down on the ocean surface are either an unbearable distraction or a small part of the city's charm, depending upon the observer. 6. Power Plallt The two immense fusion reactors located high atop Shuttle Point provide power to all of Haven and the surrounding area. This complex is one of the most well-secured in the city, and is carefully guarded by the Patrol and a small Peacekeeper detachment. 7. Th. 5•••1. This exclusive mall includes hotels, restaurants, virtual arcades, and other entertainment establishments. The Summit is suspended about 100 meters in the air between two massive support girders that run at a 45 degree angle from either side of Haven Channel. Inclinators, a cross between elevators and escalators, move pedestrians along the support girders from the surface to the Summit. Much of the Summit is enclosed, but many ofthe establishments have decks and terraces that afford breathtaking views of the city and harbor. 8. Havell Zoological Ganlell The most recent addition to Colonial Park is the Haven Zoological Garden, a stateof-the-art, GEO-sponsored facility with thousands of specimens of Poseidon's unique flora and fauna. The zoo frequently contracts with freelancers to acquire new specimens, though all such freelancers are expected to follow GEO statutes protecting Poseidon's indigenous flora and fauna. 9. The Havell M.se•• of Colollial History The Haven Museum is one of the major attractions of Colonial Park. The museum's exhibits cover all aspects of Poseidon's colonial past, including virtual tours of the Cousteau and Old Town, circa 2090, the personal journals of several original colonists, various native artifacts, and educational exhibits on the aborigines, complete with life-sized animatrons. 1O. Havell IlIstltute of Sclellce & 'echllology HIST is the only formal institution of higher learning on Poseidon. As such, it is the most active center of local scientific work outside of the secretive Incorporate research labs. The Institute's focus, unsurprisingly, is on biology, planetology, and marine engineering. 11 • Plalletlall MOII•••II' This massive, granite monolith was erected on Watertop in 2095. Its weathered face bears the engraved names of all the colonists who lived and died in Haven between Planetfall and Recontact. Watertop is the highest point on the island, and the shaded benches and lawns surrounding the monument offer peace, quiet, and magnifi002.92 cent views. The spot is a favorite hangout of HIST students, but it is often crowded with tourists during peak hours.
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o NTH E FRO N TIE R minutes? Afew hours? He didn't remember the band trailing off, and then stopping. He didn't remember the first shout or the scream that followed. He didn't remember the sudden silence followed by the curious and morbid buzz. When he finally carne back to himself and managed to drag his eyes away from Darwin's dead face, he began to notice things. The first thing he noticed was that he had spilled his beer, and that he was sitting in the puddle. The second thing he noticed was the silence. He realized the place was now empty, and slowly, like a very old man, he stood up, stiff and hunched over. He wandered instinctively towards the bar, but could have just as easily wandered in front of (1 cargo hover. It would have made no difference to him. There was Pester, on the phone, talking to a cop or something. Belle was on a stool at the bar, her face in her hands, and Torn I(eats himself was there, a short shotgun cradled in one arm. Mousy Guy's corpse lay nearby, a small pistol on the floor just beyond his outstretched hand. Pester came up to Jason with something in his hands, his raised eyebrows asking a question. Jason took the package from him, and unwrapped enough powdered juice to charge half the Floats and then some. Pester's other hand held awad of blood-stained scrip. "Figured you didn't want the cops askin' stupid questions, yah?" Pester really was a stand-up kinda guy. That's how she'd been doing it. He could have gotten her an honest job, something safe, something to get her out of the business and out of the Floats. Out of the drifting garbage. Jason had forgotten the hard lesson. He had forgotten that no matter what drifts by, no matter how good it looks, or how clean the water, garbage, just like life, still stinks. nomAD I 'member, years ago, when I first washed up'n these floats, seein a hand painted sign on one 0' the docks, said ~~If you don't know where you are, then you shouldn't be here!" At the time I didn't now how true them words was, but I learnt since they's words ta live by roun' here. Nomad ain't so much dangerous as it is mean. Life's hard here and folks ain' got none ta spare. With so many 0' the harder sorts work'n the canals and runnin the action it jus' ain' safe to trust strangers, an it takes a lot 0' water ta make a friend. 'Sides, from day ta day thins change roun' here always. A piece 0' float sinks or burns, the rot gets inta a buildn', or somthin' harsher happ'ns and a float jus' disappears. The people ain' no more regular neither. Drifters, smugglers, an' the blackmarket. Many kill ya' jus' as look at ya an if ya got somthin' they want you best give it to 'em or be ready ta fall. - Anonymous floater LOCATION AND LOCAL TERRAIN Nomad is near the equator at 07°08'23" west longitude and 03°19'18" south latitude, within a small cluster of islands well inside the protected waters of the Pacifica Archipelago. The cluster is characterized by countless tiny forested islets. The surrounding waters are shallow, warm, and clear. Combined with the topographical variety and stable climate, this makes the area one of the ecologically richest on the planet. HISTORY Nomad is unique among Poseidon's settlements because of its odd history. Originally established by natives soon after Poseidon's isolation from Earth, the settlement actually began as a nomadic collection of rafts, stilted huts and barges. This floating village continually migrated around the regional island clusters, to follow seasonal changes in local fisheries. In time, as the settlement grew, semi-permanent hamlets were established on some of the larger islands. After Recontact, things changed quickly. The Pacifica Archipelago became a strategic region for many reasons. The islands are surrounded by some of the largest Long John deposits yet found, and their sheltered waters made them ideal for harbors and therefore new colony efforts. Subsequently, and mostly by default, Nomad found itself a.boom town as regional colonies were established and the Incorporate built nearby mines and installations. However, it didn't take long for these newer settlements to establish more efficient trade patterns and develop local resources. As quickly as Nomad's boom economy had grown it fell apart, leaving the settlement an amalgamation of native and modern structures, far too large and populous to continue its nomadic existence. 002.95